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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: march · stock · deal · stand · ground · fall · bark · bulb

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. stock — goods
  3. march — the month
  4. bulb — for light
  5. march — music
  6. bulb — for light
  7. ground — a position
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. stand — to bear
  10. ground — crushed
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. bark — to shout
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. fall — the season
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. march — the month
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. fall — to drop
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. deal — to handle
  22. ground — the earth
  23. stock — shares
  24. deal — a big deal

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