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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 120 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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. race — humankind
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. fork — in a road
  6. bat — the animal
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. squash — to crush
  11. race — a contest
  12. race — the arms race
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. mine — for digging
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. pound — a weight
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. perch — the fish
  23. squash — the sport
  24. perch — for a bird

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