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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: prune · march · bound · stock · snap · ball · mate · fall

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. bound — tied together
  3. mate — a friend
  4. march — the month
  5. bound — certain
  6. mate — to breed
  7. march — the month
  8. fall — to drop
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. prune — to trim
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. snap — to click
  13. bound — obliged
  14. mate — a partner
  15. stock — shares
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. ball — a great time
  18. fall — the season
  19. march — music
  20. prune — to trim
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. fall — to drop
  23. ball — a dance
  24. stock — goods

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