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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: rock · land · stock · perch · stand · clip · wind · rush

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. stock — shares
  3. rock — a stone
  4. wind — moving air
  5. clip — a video
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. clip — for paper
  8. land — ground
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. stand — to bear
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. rush — hurry
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. clip — to cut
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. wind — moving air
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. rock — music
  21. land — to come down
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. perch — the fish
  24. stock — goods

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