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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. perch — the fish
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. clip — to cut
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. tear — from crying
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. snap — to click
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. kick — in football
  16. squash — the sport
  17. tear — from crying
  18. clip — for paper
  19. bulb — for light
  20. squash — to crush
  21. clip — a video
  22. tear — to rip
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. racket — for tennis

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