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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. scale — in music
  4. rush — hurry
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. saw — the tool
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. scale — size or range
  10. cold — not warm
  11. rock — music
  12. press — newspapers
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. press — a publisher
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. cold — an illness
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. perch — the fish
  20. saw — the tool
  21. rock — a stone
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. press — to push

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