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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. branch — a division
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. object — a thing
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. object — an aim
  7. prune — to trim
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. cold — an illness
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. cold — not warm
  13. perch — the fish
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. key — in music
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. object — to protest
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. key — for a lock
  23. key — the most important part
  24. prune — to trim

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