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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. tube — a container
  4. perch — the fish
  5. court — of law
  6. tear — to rip
  7. track — a song
  8. wound — an injury
  9. track — to keep track
  10. wound — an injury
  11. mate — a friend
  12. mate — a partner
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. suit — to fit
  16. tear — from crying
  17. mate — to breed
  18. suit — clothes
  19. suit — in cards
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — for sport
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tear — from crying
  24. track — a path

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