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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: perch · hide · staff · land · wake · march · wound · stock

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. perch — the fish
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. staff — employees
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. wake — a trail
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. staff — employees
  10. stock — goods
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. march — music
  14. wound — an injury
  15. land — a country
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. march — the month
  18. staff — a stick
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. stock — shares
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. land — ground
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. land — to come down

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