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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 120 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 · content · capital · staff · mine · bank · bay · game

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. bank — for money
  4. staff — employees
  5. capital — a city
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. stock — shares
  9. content — happy
  10. game — wild animals
  11. content — the amount
  12. staff — a stick
  13. bank — for money
  14. staff — employees
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. mine — for digging
  20. capital — money
  21. stock — goods
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. game — a match
  24. bay — a horse colour

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