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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. mug — to rob
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. cell — in biology
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. tear — to rip
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. file — a document
  12. tear — from crying
  13. mug — a face
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. file — a line of people
  19. perch — the fish
  20. deal — to handle
  21. file — a tool
  22. cell — a phone
  23. mine — for digging
  24. mug — a cup

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