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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 120 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: bat · temple · tear · court · scale · perch · file · stock

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. stock — goods
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. bat — the animal
  6. file — a document
  7. tear — from crying
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. scale — in music
  10. tear — from crying
  11. perch — the fish
  12. court — of a king
  13. file — a tool
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. stock — shares
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. court — for sport
  19. tear — to rip
  20. file — a line of people
  21. court — of law
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. scale — size or range
  24. bat — for baseball

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