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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. rock — music
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. perch — the fish
  7. scale — size or range
  8. prune — to trim
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. rock — a stone
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. sharp — clever
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. scale — in music
  19. prune — to trim
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. nail — for a hammer

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