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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: snap · branch · mug · wind · fall · stock · bowl · cue

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. mug — a face
  3. branch — a division
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. mug — a cup
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. wind — moving air
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. mug — to rob
  12. fall — to drop
  13. wind — moving air
  14. fall — the season
  15. stock — shares
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. cue — a signal
  18. cue — a hint
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. snap — to click
  21. stock — goods
  22. cue — for pool
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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