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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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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: chair · bore · march · land · stock · shower · stem · bank

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. bore — to tire
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. bore — to drill
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. stock — goods
  7. bank — of a river
  8. bank — for money
  9. land — a country
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. stem — to come from
  12. bank — for money
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. march — music
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. stock — shares
  17. land — ground
  18. shower — rain
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. shower — to wash
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. chair — a leader
  23. march — the month
  24. land — to come down

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