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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. band — a music group
  4. rush — hurry
  5. firm — steady
  6. scale — size or range
  7. game — wild animals
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. wax — to grow
  10. root — the cause
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. perch — the fish
  15. firm — decided
  16. firm — a company
  17. scale — in music
  18. band — a ring
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. root — of a word
  23. root — of a plant
  24. game — a match

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