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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. current — electric
  5. pit — in a race
  6. wind — moving air
  7. pit — a hole
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. present — a gift
  10. cell — in biology
  11. perch — the fish
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. stock — goods
  14. current — of water
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. cell — a phone
  17. present — there
  18. wind — moving air
  19. present — the time now
  20. current — happening now
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. branch — a division

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