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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. hand — in cards
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. rush — hurry
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. stem — to come from
  12. saw — the tool
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. date — the fruit
  19. saw — the tool
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. hand — help

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