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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. spring — of water
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. content — the amount
  6. spell — letters
  7. spell — magic
  8. band — a music group
  9. band — a ring
  10. branch — a division
  11. spring — a coil
  12. spring — the season
  13. pop — soda
  14. pop — to visit
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. perch — the fish
  19. pop — music
  20. content — happy
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. spell — a short time

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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