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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · wind · content · stock · rush · root · current · chair

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. content — happy
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. root — of a word
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. stock — goods
  9. rush — hurry
  10. chair — a leader
  11. stock — shares
  12. wind — moving air
  13. current — happening now
  14. root — the cause
  15. content — the amount
  16. current — electric
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. perch — the fish
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. current — of water
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. root — of a plant

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