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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. prune — to trim
  3. drill — army training
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. perch — the fish
  6. root — the cause
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. drill — the tool
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. drill — a practice
  16. charge — in control
  17. prune — to trim
  18. root — of a word
  19. charge — a price
  20. root — of a plant
  21. clip — for paper
  22. clip — a video
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. clip — to cut

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