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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: stock · capital · staff · perch · kid · saw · sharp · mouse

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. staff — a stick
  3. saw — the tool
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. staff — employees
  8. stock — shares
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. stock — goods
  12. capital — a city
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. kid — to tease
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. staff — employees
  18. capital — money
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. sharp — clever
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. saw — the tool
  23. kid — child
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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