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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. cap — a hat
  4. perch — the fish
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. file — a tool
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. file — a line of people
  10. bulb — for light
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. cap — of ice
  13. tear — to rip
  14. file — a document
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. date — the fruit
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — from crying
  22. bulb — for light
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. cap — a lid

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