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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: chair · track · stock · bay · game · ground · kid · perch

  1. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. stock — shares
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. kid — to tease
  5. ground — a position
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. ground — crushed
  9. track — to keep track
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. perch — the fish
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. game — wild animals
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. track — a song
  16. chair — a leader
  17. game — a match
  18. stock — goods
  19. ground — the earth
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. track — a path
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. kid — child
  24. perch — for a bird

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