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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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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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. stock — shares
  3. season — of the year
  4. bank — of a river
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. current — electric
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. bank — for money
  11. bank — for money
  12. chair — a leader
  13. perch — the fish
  14. snap — to click
  15. capital — money
  16. stock — goods
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. season — in sport
  19. capital — a city
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. current — of water
  23. current — happening now
  24. stock — a soup base

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