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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. pop — soda
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. object — an aim
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. file — a line of people
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. perch — the fish
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. file — a document
  13. rash — a series
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. object — a thing
  17. object — to protest
  18. wake — a trail
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. rash — hasty
  21. file — a tool
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pop — music
  24. rash — on the skin

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