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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. perch — the fish
  3. current — electric
  4. tear — to rip
  5. mug — a face
  6. snap — to click
  7. branch — a division
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. kick — in football
  10. current — happening now
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. capital — a city
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. mug — to rob
  15. capital — money
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. tear — from crying
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. tear — from crying
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. current — of water
  24. branch — of a tree

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