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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: capital · stock · branch · cold · bank · bore · rock · temple

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  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. bore — to tire
  2. bank — for money
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. capital — money
  8. stock — shares
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. bank — of a river
  11. rock — music
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. rock — a stone
  14. cold — an illness
  15. bore — to drill
  16. branch — a division
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. capital — a city
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bank — for money
  23. temple — a place of worship
  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