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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. chip — to eat
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. chip — for betting
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. bass — low music
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. squash — to crush
  16. date — the fruit
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. dip — to sink
  20. squash — the sport
  21. perch — the fish
  22. bass — the fish
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. bass — the instrument

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