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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. clip — for paper
  7. wake — a trail
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. pit — in a race
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. clip — a video
  14. chip — to eat
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. pit — a hole
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. chip — for betting
  19. perch — the fish
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. clip — to cut
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. perch — for a bird

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