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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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. craft — boats
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. perch — the fish
  6. bank — for money
  7. craft — a skill
  8. bank — of a river
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. cold — an illness
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. bat — the animal
  15. bank — for money
  16. cold — not warm
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. foot — a measure

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