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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. bank — for money
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. capital — money
  8. bank — of a river
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. game — a match
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. bank — for money
  14. sharp — clever
  15. capital — a city
  16. perch — the fish
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — the animal
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. perch — for a bird

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