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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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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. prune — to trim
  3. shower — to wash
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. season — in sport
  6. shower — rain
  7. bound — tied together
  8. prune — to trim
  9. perch — the fish
  10. bound — certain
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. file — a tool
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. file — a document
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. file — a line of people
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. bound — obliged
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. season — of the year

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