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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. rest — what's left
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. hand — in cards
  6. rest — a break
  7. cell — in biology
  8. tear — from crying
  9. perch — the fish
  10. hand — help
  11. cell — a phone
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. tear — to rip
  16. tear — from crying
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. perch — for a bird

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