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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. capital — money
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. march — the month
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. squash — to crush
  7. row — to paddle
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. march — the month
  10. squash — the sport
  11. shower — to wash
  12. row — a line
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. pop — to visit
  15. shower — rain
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. pop — music
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. march — music
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. pop — soda
  24. capital — a city

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