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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 surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. perch — the fish
  3. scale — in music
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. clip — to cut
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. ball — a dance
  9. squash — to crush
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. rash — hasty
  13. squash — the sport
  14. clip — for paper
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. clip — a video
  17. scale — size or range
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. sharp — clever
  21. ball — a great time
  22. rash — a series
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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