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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. tear — from crying
  5. row — a line
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. object — to protest
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. tear — from crying
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. tear — to rip
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. rock — music
  16. object — an aim
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. row — to paddle
  21. toast — bread
  22. perch — the fish
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. rock — a stone

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