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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. land — ground
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. snap — to click
  6. track — a path
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. dip — to sink
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. track — a song
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. land — to come down
  17. cue — a signal
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. land — a country
  20. cue — a hint
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. wake — a trail
  23. cue — for pool
  24. track — to keep track

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