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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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. cell — a phone
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. tear — from crying
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pit — in a race
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pit — a hole
  11. mate — to breed
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. cell — in biology
  15. tear — to rip
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. mate — a partner
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. dip — to sink
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. mate — a friend
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. tear — from crying
  24. perch — the fish

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