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

Word bank: stick · stock · cell · swing · perch · file

  1. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. stock — goods
  3. swing — to play on
  4. file — a line of people
  5. stock — shares
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. file — a tool
  10. perch — the fish
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. swing — in golf
  13. file — a document
  14. cell — a phone
  15. swing — music
  16. cell — in biology
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. cell — in a prison

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