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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: rush · present · bound · wound · snap · stock · pitch · march

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. rush — hurry
  3. stock — goods
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. march — the month
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. bound — obliged
  8. snap — to click
  9. stock — shares
  10. present — a gift
  11. present — the time now
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. pitch — completely
  15. wound — an injury
  16. march — music
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. wound — an injury
  19. march — the month
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. bound — tied together
  22. bound — certain
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. present — there

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