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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: temple · clip · mine · deal · stock · craft · kid · perch

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. clip — a video
  5. stock — goods
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. stock — shares
  11. mine — for digging
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. clip — for paper
  15. kid — to tease
  16. clip — to cut
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. kid — child
  20. craft — a skill
  21. deal — to handle
  22. craft — boats
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. mine — belonging to me

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