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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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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: fall · cold · stock · bay · foot · capital · kick · branch

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. capital — money
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. stock — goods
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. fall — to drop
  8. capital — a city
  9. foot — a measure
  10. cold — not warm
  11. fall — to drop
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. kick — in football
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. stock — shares
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. cold — an illness
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. fall — the season
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. branch — a division
  24. branch — of a tree

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