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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. net — after costs
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. roll — a list
  7. net — for catching
  8. squash — to crush
  9. file — a tool
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. snap — to click
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. rush — hurry
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. file — a document
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. squash — the sport
  18. perch — the fish
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. net — in sport
  23. roll — a cake
  24. file — a line of people

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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