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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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. land — a country
  4. court — for sport
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. land — ground
  8. drill — the tool
  9. drill — army training
  10. snap — to click
  11. court — of a king
  12. perch — the fish
  13. clip — to cut
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. land — to come down
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. clip — for paper
  18. clip — a video
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. lie — to recline
  23. drill — a practice
  24. court — of law

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