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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: current · bank · cabinet · hand · stock · perch · chest · wake

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. stock — shares
  3. perch — the fish
  4. bank — for money
  5. current — happening now
  6. wake — a trail
  7. chest — of your body
  8. current — of water
  9. hand — in cards
  10. hand — help
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. stock — goods
  14. bank — for money
  15. chest — of your body
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. bank — of a river
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. chest — a box
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. current — electric
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. cabinet — ministers

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