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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. rest — what's left
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. content — happy
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. kid — child
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. spell — magic
  13. rest — what's left
  14. spell — letters
  15. content — the amount
  16. kid — to tease
  17. spell — a short time
  18. rest — a break

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