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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: sharp · track · kid · stock · bound · drill · branch · perch

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. bound — certain
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. branch — a division
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. track — a song
  9. drill — a practice
  10. track — to keep track
  11. perch — the fish
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. drill — the tool
  14. bound — tied together
  15. track — a path
  16. stock — goods
  17. sharp — clever
  18. kid — child
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bound — obliged
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. drill — army training
  24. stock — shares

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