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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: drill · jam · perch · face · stock · cell · tear · rash

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  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. stock — a soup base
  2. tear — to rip
  3. face — part of the head
  4. cell — in biology
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. face — to point toward
  7. rash — a series
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. rash — hasty
  10. perch — the fish
  11. tear — from crying
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. drill — army training
  15. drill — a practice
  16. stock — shares
  17. drill — the tool
  18. stock — goods
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. face — to confront
  21. cell — a phone
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. tear — from crying
  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