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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. perch — the fish
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. mug — a cup
  6. spring — of water
  7. bank — of a river
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. row — a line
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. roll — a list
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. mug — to rob
  15. roll — a cake
  16. bank — for money
  17. mug — a face
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. spring — the season
  20. sharp — clever
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. bank — for money
  24. row — to paddle

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