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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 116 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 · cold · bowl · cabinet · tear · perch · pop · calf

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. pop — to visit
  8. cold — an illness
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. stock — goods
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. stock — shares
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — to rip
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. cold — not warm
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. pop — soda
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. pop — music
  22. tear — from crying
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. perch — the fish

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