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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: land · perch · pitcher · object · lash · stick · shower · stock

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. stock — shares
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. object — a thing
  9. perch — the fish
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. land — to come down
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. stock — goods
  17. object — to protest
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. shower — to wash
  20. object — an aim
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. land — ground
  24. shower — rain

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