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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: calf · patient · branch · stock · mine · shower · temple · drill

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. drill — a practice
  8. mine — for digging
  9. stock — goods
  10. shower — to wash
  11. branch — a division
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. drill — army training
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. stock — shares
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. shower — rain
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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