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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. perch — the fish
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. stock — goods
  8. drill — a practice
  9. firm — steady
  10. firm — a company
  11. drill — army training
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. stock — shares
  15. firm — decided
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. mine — for digging
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. drill — the tool
  23. stem — to come from
  24. pitch — completely

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