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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: stock · fan · branch · chest · wake · cabinet · chip · pitcher

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. wake — a trail
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. stock — goods
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. chest — of your body
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. chip — to eat
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. chip — for betting
  15. stock — shares
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. chest — a box
  20. chest — of your body
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. branch — a division
  24. branch — of a bank

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