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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 · stand · stock · net · clip · prune · leaves · wax

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. clip — a video
  8. net — for catching
  9. wax — to grow
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. net — in sport
  13. perch — the fish
  14. prune — to trim
  15. stand — to bear
  16. prune — to trim
  17. stock — goods
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. clip — for paper
  20. stock — shares
  21. net — after costs
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. stock — a soup base

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