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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 124 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · stock · band · charge · shower · march · bark · racket

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bark — to shout
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. charge — in control
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. march — music
  8. stock — goods
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. stock — shares
  12. band — a music group
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. kid — to tease
  15. shower — rain
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. shower — to wash
  18. band — a ring
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. march — the month
  22. kid — child
  23. march — the month
  24. charge — electricity

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