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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: bulb · mate · kid · march · present · kick · stock · track

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. present — the time now
  3. track — a path
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. kid — child
  6. track — to keep track
  7. kick — in football
  8. stock — shares
  9. kid — to tease
  10. track — a song
  11. bulb — for light
  12. present — a gift
  13. bulb — for light
  14. mate — a partner
  15. mate — to breed
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. march — the month
  18. mate — a friend
  19. stock — goods
  20. march — music
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. present — there
  24. march — the month

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