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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 116 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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. swing — in golf
  4. rock — music
  5. dip — to sink
  6. net — after costs
  7. pop — music
  8. net — in sport
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. net — for catching
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. perch — the fish
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. rock — a stone
  18. pop — soda
  19. pop — to visit
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. swing — to play on
  22. bat — the animal
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. swing — music

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