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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 120 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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Word bank
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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. kid — child
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. court — of law
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. cell — in biology
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. dip — to sink
  13. kid — to tease
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. perch — the fish
  17. court — of a king
  18. cell — a phone
  19. lie — to recline
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. court — for sport

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