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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 · rest · mine · scale · snap · fall · bore · stock

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. stock — goods
  3. march — the month
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. mine — for digging
  6. rest — what's left
  7. scale — size or range
  8. march — music
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. bore — to drill
  13. rest — a break
  14. march — the month
  15. scale — in music
  16. fall — the season
  17. fall — to drop
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. snap — to click
  21. stock — shares
  22. fall — to drop
  23. bore — to tire
  24. mine — belonging to me

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