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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 · cabinet · bear · net · stock · bat · patient · game

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. bat — the animal
  4. net — in sport
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. net — after costs
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bear — the animal
  15. game — wild animals
  16. perch — the fish
  17. bear — the animal
  18. net — for catching
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. game — a match
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. stock — shares

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