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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. kid — child
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. perch — the fish
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. face — to point toward
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. bank — for money
  13. face — to confront
  14. capital — a city
  15. face — part of the head
  16. kid — to tease
  17. date — the fruit
  18. bank — of a river
  19. capital — money
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. fork — in a road
  23. bank — for money
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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