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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. hand — in cards
  3. board — to get on
  4. wax — to grow
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. row — to paddle
  7. sharp — clever
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. charge — electricity
  10. hand — help
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. charge — a price
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. charge — in control
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. board — a committee
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. row — a line

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