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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: sharp · roll · last · bowl · stock · branch · kid · foot

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. last — finally
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. kid — child
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. foot — a measure
  8. kid — to tease
  9. stock — goods
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. sharp — clever
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. branch — a division
  19. roll — a cake
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. last — final
  22. roll — a list
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. stock — shares

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