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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. present — there
  5. hand — in cards
  6. file — a line of people
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. file — a document
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. present — the time now
  11. wake — a trail
  12. perch — the fish
  13. file — a tool
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. present — a gift
  18. hand — help

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