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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. cell — a phone
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. row — to paddle
  5. present — a gift
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. row — a line
  8. bulb — for light
  9. cell — in biology
  10. sharp — clever
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. bulb — for light
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — an injury
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. present — there
  24. present — the time now

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