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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. key — for a lock
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. cell — a phone
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. lean — to bend
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. mine — for digging
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. spell — letters
  11. key — in music
  12. lean — thin
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. prune — to trim
  16. spell — magic
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. perch — the fish
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. cell — in biology
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. prune — to trim
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. key — the most important part

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