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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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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: key · hand · trunk · drill · safe · stock · bat · perch

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. drill — army training
  3. key — in music
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. stock — shares
  9. perch — the fish
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. hand — in cards
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. hand — help
  16. key — the most important part
  17. key — for a lock
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. drill — the tool
  20. drill — a practice
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. bat — the animal
  24. stock — goods

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