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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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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: lash · pass · stock · branch · land · wound · cold · bound

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. stock — goods
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. bound — obliged
  6. wound — an injury
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. bound — certain
  9. branch — a division
  10. cold — an illness
  11. land — to come down
  12. pass — a permit
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stock — shares
  16. bound — tied together
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. land — ground
  19. land — a country
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. cold — not warm
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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