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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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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: chair · stock · stick · rule · date · perch · rest · saw

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. rule — government
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. chair — a leader
  9. perch — the fish
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. rest — a break
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. rule — a law
  18. rest — what's left
  19. date — the fruit
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. saw — the tool
  22. rest — what's left
  23. stock — shares
  24. saw — the tool

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