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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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. rule — a law
  4. file — a line of people
  5. fork — in a road
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. spell — magic
  8. spell — a short time
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. rush — hurry
  16. perch — the fish
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. spell — letters
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. rule — government
  22. file — a document
  23. branch — a division
  24. file — a tool

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