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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. content — the amount
  6. perch — the fish
  7. kid — to tease
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. last — to go on
  11. snap — to click
  12. rash — hasty
  13. content — happy
  14. craft — a skill
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. last — final
  18. last — finally
  19. kid — child
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. craft — boats
  22. rash — a series
  23. pass — a permit
  24. rash — on the skin

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