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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 120 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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. rock — music
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. board — a committee
  8. perch — the fish
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. band — a music group
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. board — to get on
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. snap — to click
  17. band — a ring
  18. rock — a stone

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