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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 little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. perch — the fish
  5. bear — the animal
  6. land — a country
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. current — electric
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — from crying
  14. current — of water
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. land — to come down
  18. land — ground
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. sharp — clever
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. current — happening now
  23. tear — to rip
  24. sharp — exactly

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