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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. row — to paddle
  8. perch — the fish
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. last — finally
  14. row — a line
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. last — final
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. band — a music group
  20. last — to go on
  21. band — a ring
  22. branch — a division
  23. snap — to click
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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