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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: branch · spring · mark · present · mouse · stock · race · land

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. stock — goods
  3. spring — the season
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. present — a gift
  6. branch — a division
  7. spring — a coil
  8. present — the time now
  9. spring — of water
  10. land — a country
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. land — to come down
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. race — a contest
  15. race — the arms race
  16. present — there
  17. mark — a trace
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. stock — shares
  20. mark — a grade
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. race — humankind
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. branch — of a bank

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