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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. pound — a weight
  5. root — of a plant
  6. perch — the fish
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. root — the cause
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. file — a document
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. rush — hurry
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. wound — an injury
  17. root — of a word
  18. file — a line of people
  19. sharp — clever
  20. file — a tool
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. saw — the tool
  23. wound — an injury
  24. saw — the tool

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