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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. wound — an injury
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. game — a match
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. game — wild animals
  15. bat — the animal
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. chip — to eat
  19. chip — for betting
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. wake — a trail
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. wound — an injury

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