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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. chip — to eat
  3. stock — goods
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. clip — to cut
  6. stock — shares
  7. mate — a partner
  8. spell — magic
  9. chip — for betting
  10. board — a committee
  11. board — to get on
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. wind — moving air
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. perch — the fish
  17. clip — for paper
  18. clip — a video
  19. spell — a short time
  20. mate — to breed
  21. mate — a friend
  22. wind — moving air
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. spell — letters

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