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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.

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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: stock · branch · race · fan · bore · drill · pitcher · wind

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. drill — army training
  4. race — humankind
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. stock — goods
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. race — a contest
  10. branch — a division
  11. wind — moving air
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wind — moving air
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. drill — a practice
  17. bore — to drill
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. stock — shares
  21. race — the arms race
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. drill — the tool
  24. bore — gave birth

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