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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kid · present · press · club · stock · perch

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. kid — child
  3. club — a group
  4. present — a gift
  5. club — for dancing
  6. stock — goods
  7. perch — the fish
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. press — a publisher
  11. kid — to tease
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. club — for golf
  14. present — there
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. press — newspapers
  17. press — to push
  18. stock — shares

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