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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 120 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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. wind — moving air
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. march — the month
  6. cap — a hat
  7. cap — a lid
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. sharp — clever
  10. march — the month
  11. stem — to come from
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. firm — decided
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. march — music
  19. firm — steady
  20. cap — of ice
  21. firm — a company
  22. wind — moving air
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. plane — a tool

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