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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 116 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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. squash — to crush
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. mark — a grade
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. clip — a video
  9. perch — the fish
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. scale — size or range
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — the season
  15. fall — to drop
  16. clip — to cut
  17. stem — to come from
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. clip — for paper
  21. scale — in music
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. mark — a trace
  24. squash — the sport

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