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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 116 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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. mate — a partner
  4. firm — steady
  5. swing — to play on
  6. mate — a friend
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. saw — the tool
  9. mate — to breed
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. game — wild animals
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. squash — the sport
  16. swing — music
  17. snap — to click
  18. perch — the fish
  19. game — a match
  20. swing — in golf
  21. squash — to crush
  22. saw — the tool
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. firm — a company

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