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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. game — wild animals
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. net — for catching
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. content — the amount
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. hand — help
  10. spell — letters
  11. net — after costs
  12. spell — a short time
  13. spell — magic
  14. key — the most important part
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. game — a match
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. perch — the fish
  19. key — for a lock
  20. content — happy
  21. hand — in cards
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. key — in music
  24. perch — for a bird

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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