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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. roll — a cake
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. lean — to bend
  7. net — after costs
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. lean — thin
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. net — for catching
  20. net — in sport
  21. roll — a list
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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