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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. file — a document
  3. court — of law
  4. spring — of water
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. court — for sport
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. chip — for betting
  11. chip — to eat
  12. file — a line of people
  13. spring — the season
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. perch — the fish
  16. spring — a coil
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. court — of a king
  20. hand — help
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. hand — in cards
  23. file — a tool
  24. lean — to bend

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