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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. snap — to click
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. saw — the tool
  9. pop — music
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. fine — all right
  12. saw — the tool
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. pop — soda
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. pop — to visit
  20. plane — a tool
  21. fine — high quality
  22. mark — a trace
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. mark — a grade

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