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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: stock · chair · march · tube · rule · kid · calf · date

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. stock — shares
  4. date — the fruit
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. chair — a leader
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. march — the month
  9. tube — a container
  10. tube — the underground
  11. stock — goods
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. march — music
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. rule — a law
  21. kid — to tease
  22. rule — government
  23. kid — child
  24. chair — a professorship

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