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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. file — a line of people
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. file — a document
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. file — a tool
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. ground — the earth
  13. perch — the fish
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. spell — magic
  17. wake — a trail
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. ground — a position
  20. ground — crushed
  21. pound — a weight
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. spell — letters

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