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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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. chair — a leader
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. bore — to tire
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. stock — shares
  7. scale — size or range
  8. bore — to drill
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. key — the most important part
  14. perch — the fish
  15. kick — in football
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. key — in music
  19. race — humankind
  20. race — a contest
  21. key — for a lock
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. scale — in music
  24. race — the arms race

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