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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  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. game — wild animals
  2. perch — the fish
  3. march — music
  4. prune — to trim
  5. march — the month
  6. march — the month
  7. last — to go on
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. game — a match
  11. last — finally
  12. last — final
  13. prune — to trim
  14. deal — to handle
  15. snap — to click
  16. rash — a series
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  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