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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. prune — to trim
  5. present — a gift
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. shower — rain
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. perch — the fish
  10. present — the time now
  11. present — there
  12. prune — to trim
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. shower — to wash
  15. drill — army training
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. lean — to bend
  19. drill — a practice
  20. drill — the tool
  21. spell — letters
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. spell — a short time
  24. spell — magic

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