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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 120 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: mug · march · net · bound · hand · stock · chest · scale

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. scale — in music
  3. mug — a cup
  4. net — in sport
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. mug — a face
  7. hand — help
  8. chest — a box
  9. chest — of your body
  10. net — for catching
  11. bound — tied together
  12. hand — in cards
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. march — the month
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. stock — shares
  17. bound — certain
  18. chest — of your body
  19. mug — to rob
  20. net — after costs
  21. march — music
  22. stock — goods
  23. scale — size or range
  24. bound — obliged

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