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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 · key · clip · band · object · game · perch · hide

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. clip — for paper
  3. object — to protest
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. object — an aim
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. game — a match
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. object — a thing
  12. key — for a lock
  13. stock — goods
  14. clip — a video
  15. stock — shares
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a ring
  20. game — wild animals
  21. perch — the fish
  22. clip — to cut
  23. band — a music group
  24. key — in music

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