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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 120 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: mark · rush · kick · wind · stock · branch · stand · perch

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  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. rush — hurry
  2. stock — shares
  3. perch — the fish
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. kick — in football
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. mark — a trace
  10. stand — to bear
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. branch — a division
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. mark — a grade
  21. wind — moving air
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. wind — moving air
  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