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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: mine · stock · ground · spring · march · drill · firm · lie

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. ground — a position
  3. mine — for digging
  4. stock — shares
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. drill — army training
  8. spring — the season
  9. ground — the earth
  10. march — the month
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. march — the month
  13. ground — crushed
  14. spring — of water
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. firm — decided
  17. drill — a practice
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. firm — a company
  20. drill — the tool
  21. spring — a coil
  22. stock — goods
  23. firm — steady
  24. lie — to recline

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