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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: spell · kick · spring · march · bat · stock · lie · band

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. spring — of water
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. march — music
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. stock — goods
  8. band — a music group
  9. bat — the animal
  10. band — a ring
  11. lie — to recline
  12. stock — shares
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. spring — a coil
  18. march — the month
  19. kick — in football
  20. spell — letters
  21. spell — magic
  22. spring — the season
  23. spell — a short time
  24. march — the month

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