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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: bear · wind · stock · bulb · march · stand · capital · kid

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. capital — money
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. kid — to tease
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. bulb — for light
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. march — the month
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bear — the animal
  12. march — the month
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. bear — the animal
  15. wind — moving air
  16. stock — shares
  17. capital — a city
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. wind — moving air
  20. stand — to bear
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. kid — child
  23. stock — goods
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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