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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. content — the amount
  5. row — to paddle
  6. cell — in biology
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. mine — for digging
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. perch — the fish
  17. row — a line
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. content — happy
  20. cell — a phone
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. content — videos and posts

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