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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. root — the cause
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. fine — high quality
  5. perch — the fish
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. fine — all right
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. clip — to cut
  11. file — a line of people
  12. face — part of the head
  13. sharp — clever
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. root — of a word
  18. clip — a video
  19. face — to confront
  20. root — of a plant
  21. file — a document
  22. face — to point toward
  23. clip — for paper
  24. file — a tool

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