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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. saw — the tool
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. fine — all right
  5. saw — the tool
  6. prune — to trim
  7. row — a line
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. row — to paddle
  10. mate — a partner
  11. prune — to trim
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. perch — the fish
  14. hand — help
  15. mate — a friend
  16. mate — to breed
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. fine — high quality
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. rush — hurry
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. hand — in cards
  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