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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. shower — to wash
  3. swing — to play on
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. land — ground
  7. perch — the fish
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. current — of water
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. current — electric
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. branch — a division
  17. land — to come down
  18. land — a country
  19. shower — rain
  20. swing — music
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. swing — in golf
  23. current — happening now
  24. date — the fruit

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