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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: foot · staff · current · wind · stock · hand · perch · snap

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. foot — a measure
  3. hand — in cards
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. perch — the fish
  7. current — happening now
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. staff — employees
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. stock — shares
  12. current — electric
  13. wind — moving air
  14. hand — help
  15. staff — employees
  16. stock — goods
  17. current — of water
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. wind — moving air
  24. staff — a stick

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