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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. bear — the animal
  4. suit — to fit
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. band — a music group
  7. hand — help
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. scale — size or range
  10. suit — in cards
  11. scale — in music
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. band — a ring
  14. bear — the animal
  15. suit — clothes
  16. stand — to bear
  17. perch — the fish
  18. cold — not warm
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. hand — in cards
  22. cold — an illness
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. cold — the Cold War

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