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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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. roll — a cake
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. squash — the sport
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. perch — the fish
  8. kid — to tease
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. court — of law
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. court — of a king
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. wax — to grow
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. court — for sport
  20. snap — to click
  21. squash — to crush
  22. roll — a list
  23. kid — child
  24. perch — for a bird

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