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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 116 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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. degree — from a university
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. spell — letters
  11. degree — an amount
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. degree — temperature
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. perch — the fish
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. spell — a short time

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