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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. spring — the season
  3. game — wild animals
  4. squash — to crush
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. season — in sport
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. spring — a coil
  10. perch — the fish
  11. deal — to handle
  12. chest — of your body
  13. season — of the year
  14. wax — to grow
  15. chest — a box
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. game — a match
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. squash — the sport
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. spring — of water
  23. chest — of your body
  24. deal — an agreement

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