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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. snap — to click
  3. file — a line of people
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. cue — for pool
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. last — to go on
  10. cue — a signal
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. file — a tool
  14. cue — a hint
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. last — final
  17. file — a document
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. last — finally
  22. perch — the fish
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. perch — for a bird

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