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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. mug — a cup
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. clip — a video
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. clip — for paper
  12. mug — a face
  13. land — a country
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. land — to come down
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. pitch — completely
  18. wake — a trail
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. clip — to cut
  21. mug — to rob
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. land — ground
  24. wave — with your hand

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