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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: mouse · stock · bound · ball · net · march · cold · fine

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. march — the month
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. ball — a dance
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. bound — certain
  9. net — after costs
  10. ball — a great time
  11. bound — obliged
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. net — in sport
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. march — music
  16. cold — an illness
  17. march — the month
  18. fine — all right
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. stock — goods
  21. bound — tied together
  22. stock — shares
  23. net — for catching
  24. cold — not warm

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