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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. court — of a king
  3. spell — letters
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. file — a tool
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. mate — to breed
  8. spell — magic
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. mate — a partner
  11. file — a line of people
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. mate — a friend
  14. file — a document
  15. row — a line
  16. court — of law
  17. hand — help
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. spell — a short time
  20. perch — the fish
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — for light
  23. court — for sport
  24. row — to paddle

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