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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. spell — magic
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. march — music
  7. pitch — completely
  8. bank — for money
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. march — the month
  12. branch — a division
  13. court — for sport
  14. spell — letters
  15. court — of law
  16. spell — a short time
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. bank — of a river
  20. court — of a king
  21. march — the month
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. bank — for money
  24. perch — for a bird

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