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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. saw — the tool
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. snap — to click
  5. shower — to wash
  6. shower — rain
  7. net — for catching
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. net — in sport
  12. net — after costs
  13. root — the cause
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. root — of a word
  18. perch — the fish
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. root — of a plant
  21. saw — the tool
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. arm — a part of something

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