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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. stock — goods
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. stock — shares
  7. chest — of your body
  8. mine — for digging
  9. chest — of your body
  10. hand — help
  11. perch — the fish
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. chip — to eat
  14. snap — to click
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. chip — for betting
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. hand — in cards
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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