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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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. ground — a position
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. can — a tin
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. file — a tool
  7. row — to paddle
  8. can — a tin
  9. spring — a coil
  10. current — electric
  11. file — a line of people
  12. pit — a hole
  13. ground — crushed
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. file — a document
  16. current — happening now
  17. perch — the fish
  18. row — a line
  19. can — to be able to
  20. spring — of water
  21. pit — in a race
  22. ground — the earth
  23. spring — the season
  24. current — of water

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