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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. can — a tin
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. bound — obliged
  5. stock — shares
  6. season — of the year
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bound — tied together
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. bound — certain
  12. season — in sport
  13. net — for catching
  14. wind — moving air
  15. perch — the fish
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. can — to be able to
  18. net — after costs
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. net — in sport
  21. stock — goods
  22. board — a committee
  23. can — a tin
  24. board — to get on

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