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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. wind — moving air
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. cell — a phone
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. perch — the fish
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. cell — in biology
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. ball — a dance
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. firm — steady
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. shower — to wash
  15. wind — moving air
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. ball — a great time
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. firm — a company
  20. branch — a division
  21. rock — music
  22. shower — rain
  23. rock — a stone
  24. firm — decided

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