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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. hand — help
  5. field — for sport
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. suit — in cards
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. field — a subject
  11. hand — in cards
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. suit — clothes
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. squash — to crush
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. pound — a weight
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. field — farmland
  21. squash — the sport
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. suit — to fit

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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