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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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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: saw · band · object · mine · fall · stock · branch · mark

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. mine — for digging
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. object — a thing
  6. saw — the tool
  7. object — to protest
  8. stock — shares
  9. fall — to drop
  10. mark — a grade
  11. object — an aim
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. mark — a trace
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. saw — the tool
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. band — a ring
  18. fall — the season
  19. branch — a division
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. stock — goods
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. fall — to drop
  24. branch — of a tree

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