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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. track — a path
  5. track — a song
  6. track — to keep track
  7. fall — the season
  8. content — happy
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. content — the amount
  12. root — of a plant
  13. branch — a division
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. root — the cause
  18. fall — to drop
  19. perch — the fish
  20. stock — goods
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. root — of a word
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. fall — to drop

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