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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. march — the month
  5. prune — to trim
  6. deal — to handle
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. club — for dancing
  10. march — the month
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. roll — a list
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. march — music
  16. prune — to trim
  17. perch — the fish
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. roll — a cake
  21. club — for golf
  22. fork — in a road
  23. club — a group
  24. prune — the fruit

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