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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. chip — for betting
  3. sharp — clever
  4. cap — a lid
  5. chip — to eat
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. scale — in music
  8. perch — the fish
  9. spring — of water
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. cap — a hat
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. scale — size or range
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. season — of the year
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. cap — of ice
  20. spring — the season
  21. season — in sport
  22. saw — the tool
  23. spring — a coil
  24. saw — the tool

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