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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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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  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. date — the fruit
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. spring — a coil
  4. spring — of water
  5. chip — for betting
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. staff — a stick
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. game — wild animals
  11. chip — to eat
  12. game — a match
  13. staff — employees
  14. stock — goods
  15. spring — the season
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. stock — shares
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. staff — employees
  23. perch — the fish
  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