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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: board · mark · stock · march · leaves · charge · clip · season

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. clip — a video
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. march — music
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. season — in sport
  8. mark — a trace
  9. stock — shares
  10. board — to get on
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. charge — electricity
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. season — of the year
  16. charge — a price
  17. march — the month
  18. board — a committee
  19. stock — goods
  20. charge — in control
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. march — the month
  23. clip — for paper
  24. mark — a grade

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