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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: prune · chair · pound · stock · perch · fan · face · present

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. face — part of the head
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. chair — a leader
  10. perch — the fish
  11. face — to point toward
  12. face — to confront
  13. prune — to trim
  14. present — the time now
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. present — there
  17. present — a gift
  18. pound — a weight
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. prune — to trim
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. stock — shares
  24. chair — to sit on

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