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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. root — of a word
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. shower — rain
  5. shower — to wash
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. content — happy
  8. spring — of water
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. root — the cause
  11. lie — to recline
  12. pitch — completely
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. spring — the season
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. root — of a plant
  20. spring — a coil
  21. content — the amount
  22. fine — high quality
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. fine — all right

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