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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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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: bank · band · branch · ground · pop · stock · scale · straw

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. bank — for money
  4. branch — a division
  5. band — a music group
  6. pop — soda
  7. scale — size or range
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. ground — the earth
  10. bank — for money
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. scale — in music
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. bank — of a river
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. ground — crushed
  19. stock — goods
  20. band — a ring
  21. stock — shares
  22. ground — a position
  23. pop — to visit
  24. branch — of a bank

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