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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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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: vault · nail · perch · club · board · stock · spring · hand

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. vault — a safe
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. board — a committee
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. hand — help
  8. stock — shares
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. board — to get on
  11. club — for dancing
  12. spring — the season
  13. spring — of water
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. hand — in cards
  17. stock — goods
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. club — for golf
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. club — a group
  24. spring — a coil

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