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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kid · land · firm · stock · scale · march

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. march — music
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. firm — decided
  5. scale — in music
  6. firm — steady
  7. land — ground
  8. stock — goods
  9. kid — child
  10. land — a country
  11. stock — shares
  12. firm — a company
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. land — to come down
  15. scale — size or range
  16. march — the month
  17. kid — to tease
  18. stock — a soup base

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com