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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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. stock — shares
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. last — to go on
  7. net — for catching
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. net — after costs
  10. net — in sport
  11. race — humankind
  12. race — the arms race
  13. race — a contest
  14. object — to protest
  15. object — an aim
  16. perch — the fish
  17. last — final
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. branch — a division
  21. last — finally
  22. object — a thing
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. deal — to handle

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