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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. land — a country
  6. perch — the fish
  7. kid — to tease
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. bound — certain
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. board — to get on
  12. squash — to crush
  13. clip — to cut
  14. bound — tied together
  15. land — ground
  16. land — to come down
  17. clip — for paper
  18. bound — obliged
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. clip — a video
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. board — a committee
  23. kid — child
  24. squash — the sport

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