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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 · tear · net · spring · object · game · track · perch

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. net — in sport
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. perch — the fish
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. spring — the season
  7. spring — a coil
  8. track — to keep track
  9. track — a song
  10. game — wild animals
  11. tear — from crying
  12. object — an aim
  13. net — for catching
  14. stock — shares
  15. object — a thing
  16. net — after costs
  17. object — to protest
  18. game — a match
  19. stock — goods
  20. tear — to rip
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. spring — of water
  24. tear — from crying

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