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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 116 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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. spring — of water
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. spring — the season
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. track — a song
  9. track — a path
  10. track — to keep track
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. face — to confront
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. face — part of the head
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. face — to point toward
  18. perch — the fish

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