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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. tear — from crying
  4. fine — high quality
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. row — a line
  7. row — to paddle
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. stem — to come from
  13. tear — from crying
  14. fine — all right
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. band — a music group
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. tear — to rip
  20. band — a ring
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. perch — the fish
  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