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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 tickets are free of ________________.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. cue — for pool
  3. stock — shares
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. stock — goods
  7. charge — electricity
  8. cue — a signal
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. march — the month
  11. degree — temperature
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — to rip
  15. degree — an amount
  16. cue — a hint
  17. march — the month
  18. tear — from crying
  19. charge — in control
  20. degree — from a university
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. march — music
  24. perch — the fish

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