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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 116 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: stock · trunk · band · stick · racket · perch · kid · spring

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. kid — to tease
  3. stock — shares
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. perch — the fish
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. stock — goods
  9. band — a music group
  10. kid — child
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. spring — a coil
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. spring — of water
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. spring — the season
  24. racket — for tennis

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