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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. perch — the fish
  3. chip — to eat
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. last — to go on
  8. row — to paddle
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. file — a document
  11. saw — the tool
  12. chip — for betting
  13. file — a line of people
  14. last — final
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. file — a tool
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. row — a line
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. tear — from crying
  24. last — finally

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