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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 120 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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. deal — to handle
  7. track — a path
  8. track — to keep track
  9. spring — a coil
  10. perch — the fish
  11. squash — the sport
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. squash — to crush
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. sharp — clever
  20. spring — of water
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. spring — the season
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. calf — a young animal

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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