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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 · perch · kid · cell · rule · dip · scale · rash

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. kid — child
  4. perch — the fish
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. dip — to sink
  8. rash — a series
  9. rule — a law
  10. rule — government
  11. cell — a phone
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. scale — size or range
  16. scale — in music
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. rash — hasty
  20. kid — to tease
  21. cell — in biology
  22. stock — shares
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. stock — goods

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