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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: fan · game · bark · foot · present · branch · rock · stock

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. branch — a division
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. rock — music
  7. game — wild animals
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. present — there
  13. rock — a stone
  14. game — a match
  15. present — the time now
  16. foot — a measure
  17. bark — to shout
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. stock — goods
  21. present — a gift
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. rock — to move gently

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