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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. sharp — clever
  3. track — a song
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. perch — the fish
  6. file — a document
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. hand — in cards
  15. track — to keep track
  16. scale — size or range
  17. hand — help
  18. file — a line of people
  19. content — the amount
  20. track — a path
  21. scale — in music
  22. file — a tool
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. content — happy

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