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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: net · tube · stock · present · date · march · patient · branch

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. branch — a division
  4. net — for catching
  5. tube — a container
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. stock — goods
  8. march — music
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. march — the month
  12. stock — shares
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. march — the month
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. present — the time now
  18. tube — the underground
  19. net — after costs
  20. net — in sport
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. date — the fruit
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. present — a gift

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