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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. court — of law
  4. dip — to sink
  5. court — for sport
  6. prune — to trim
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. ground — crushed
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. prune — to trim
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. court — of a king
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. ground — a position
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. ground — the earth

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