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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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. lie — to recline
  5. roll — a cake
  6. field — farmland
  7. current — electric
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. wax — to grow
  12. dip — to sink
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. field — a subject
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. current — of water
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. roll — a list
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. current — happening now
  24. field — 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