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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. roll — a cake
  3. perch — the fish
  4. fall — to drop
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. fall — the season
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. fall — to drop
  10. pop — music
  11. hand — in cards
  12. pop — to visit
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. pop — soda
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. roll — a list
  20. hand — help
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. saw — the tool
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. branch — a division

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