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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 120 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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. rock — music
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. rock — a stone
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. mate — to breed
  8. dip — to sink
  9. foot — a measure
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. mate — a partner
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. saw — the tool
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. perch — the fish
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. tear — to rip
  20. tear — from crying
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. sharp — clever
  23. tear — from crying
  24. saw — the tool

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