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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 116 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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. band — a music group
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. sharp — clever
  7. band — a ring
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — the animal
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. current — of water
  15. pound — a weight
  16. current — happening now
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. fork — in a road
  24. current — electric

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