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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: cold · mate · stem · ruler · firm · net · perch · stock

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  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. perch — for a bird
  2. mate — a partner
  3. mate — a friend
  4. net — after costs
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. perch — the fish
  7. mate — to breed
  8. firm — steady
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. cold — an illness
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. net — in sport
  14. stock — shares
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. stem — to come from
  18. cold — not warm
  19. net — for catching
  20. firm — decided
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. firm — a company
  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