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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 120 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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. wound — an injury
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. swing — to play on
  9. spring — the season
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. spring — a coil
  12. swing — in golf
  13. spring — of water
  14. swing — music
  15. wound — an injury
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. spell — magic
  20. perch — the fish
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. spell — a short time
  23. spell — letters
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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