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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. land — ground
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. can — a tin
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. row — to paddle
  12. cold — not warm
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. fork — in a road
  15. row — a line
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. land — to come down
  19. can — to be able to
  20. cold — an illness
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. land — a country
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. can — a tin

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