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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. clip — to cut
  3. current — of water
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. current — electric
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. clip — a video
  8. firm — a company
  9. game — wild animals
  10. firm — steady
  11. firm — decided
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. clip — for paper
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. dip — to sink
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. stem — to come from
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. game — a match
  23. current — happening now
  24. stem — of a plant

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