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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: march · spell · stem · stock · branch · bulb · cell · mate

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. march — music
  4. spell — magic
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. mate — to breed
  8. mate — a partner
  9. stock — goods
  10. spell — a short time
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. cell — a phone
  13. stem — to come from
  14. cell — in biology
  15. spell — letters
  16. stock — shares
  17. bulb — for light
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. march — the month
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. march — the month
  22. bulb — for light
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. branch — a division

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