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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. track — a song
  4. capital — a city
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. capital — money
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. row — a line
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. row — to paddle
  14. dip — to sink
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. track — to keep track
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. perch — the fish
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. capital — a big letter

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