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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. drill — a practice
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. drill — the tool
  5. band — a ring
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. band — a music group
  10. snap — to click
  11. fine — all right
  12. drill — army training
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. fine — high quality
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. shower — rain
  17. shower — to wash
  18. snap — to speak sharply

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