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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: fall · tube · stock · rule · fork · march · bay · pitcher

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. fork — in a road
  4. rule — a law
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. march — music
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. fall — to drop
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. fall — the season
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. tube — the underground
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. march — the month
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. stock — shares
  19. tube — a container
  20. march — the month
  21. rule — government
  22. stock — goods
  23. fall — to drop
  24. pitcher — a jug

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