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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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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 · land · prune · stock · board · plane · march · bore

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. march — the month
  4. march — the month
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. board — to get on
  9. stock — goods
  10. land — to come down
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. mine — for digging
  13. bore — to tire
  14. prune — to trim
  15. board — a committee
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. bore — to drill
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. stock — shares
  20. land — a country
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. march — music
  23. land — ground
  24. plane — a tool

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