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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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. row — a line
  3. clip — for paper
  4. clip — a video
  5. lean — to bend
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. lean — thin
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. perch — the fish
  15. clip — to cut
  16. row — to paddle
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. chip — for betting
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. chip — to eat
  24. nail — on a finger

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