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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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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. perch — the fish
  3. saw — the tool
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. fine — high quality
  11. mine — for digging
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. foot — a measure
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. game — a match
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. fine — all right

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