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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: march · mark · bore · charge · stock · tube · cue · kid

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  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. charge — electricity
  2. cue — a signal
  3. cue — for pool
  4. march — music
  5. bore — to tire
  6. tube — a container
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. stock — shares
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. kid — child
  11. bore — to drill
  12. charge — a price
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. cue — a hint
  15. kid — to tease
  16. march — the month
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. mark — a grade
  19. charge — in control
  20. march — the month
  21. mark — a trace
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. tube — the underground
  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