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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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. perch — for a bird
  4. bat — the animal
  5. perch — the fish
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. swing — to play on
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. net — for catching
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. net — after costs
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. swing — in golf
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. net — in sport
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. swing — music
  22. sharp — clever
  23. lie — to recline
  24. lie — an untruth

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