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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. court — of law
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. net — in sport
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. net — after costs
  9. cue — a hint
  10. net — for catching
  11. saw — the tool
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. court — for sport
  14. saw — the tool
  15. cue — for pool
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. shower — rain
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. cue — a signal
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. court — of a king
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. shower — to wash
  24. branch — a division

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