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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. game — wild animals
  3. drill — army training
  4. perch — the fish
  5. kid — to tease
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. spring — a coil
  9. spring — of water
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. spring — the season
  12. prune — to trim
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. spell — letters
  15. game — a match
  16. prune — to trim
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. kid — child
  20. spell — magic
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. drill — a practice
  24. drill — the tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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