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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's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. swing — in golf
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. craft — a skill
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. mate — to breed
  7. swing — to play on
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. perch — the fish
  11. swing — music
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. row — a line
  14. mate — a partner
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. snap — to click
  18. craft — boats
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. row — to paddle
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. mate — a friend
  24. craft — a handicraft

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