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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. wound — an injury
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. prune — to trim
  6. last — to go on
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. last — final
  9. kid — to tease
  10. wound — an injury
  11. prune — to trim
  12. kid — child
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. rash — hasty
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. board — to get on
  18. perch — the fish
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. board — a committee
  21. rash — a series
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. last — finally

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