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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.

Make a worksheet

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: mine · game · degree · stick · stock · deal · can · perch

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. can — a tin
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. degree — an amount
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. degree — from a university
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. game — a match
  14. mine — for digging
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. can — to be able to
  18. perch — the fish
  19. can — a tin
  20. game — wild animals
  21. stock — goods
  22. degree — temperature
  23. stock — shares
  24. deal — to handle

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