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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. sharp — clever
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. spring — a coil
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. swing — music
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. kid — child
  14. perch — the fish
  15. swing — in golf
  16. kid — to tease
  17. shower — rain
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. spring — the season
  20. swing — to play on
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. shower — to wash
  23. spring — of water
  24. racket — for tennis

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