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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 116 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: stick · stand · bank · cold · bat · stock · march · land

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. march — the month
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. march — the month
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bank — for money
  7. land — a country
  8. march — music
  9. bank — for money
  10. bat — the animal
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. bank — of a river
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. stock — goods
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. cold — not warm
  19. land — to come down
  20. cold — an illness
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. stand — to bear
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. land — ground

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