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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: swing · stock · chair · bank · perch · fork · chip · wake

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. stock — shares
  3. bank — for money
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bank — for money
  7. chip — to eat
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. wake — a trail
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. bank — of a river
  13. swing — in golf
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. swing — music
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. chip — for betting
  18. stock — goods
  19. perch — the fish
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. chair — a leader
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. fork — in a road
  24. chip — in a computer

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