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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. ball — a dance
  3. prune — to trim
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. stock — goods
  7. lean — to bend
  8. lean — thin
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. stock — shares
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. degree — an amount
  14. prune — to trim
  15. degree — temperature
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. degree — from a university
  20. ball — a great time
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. leaves — of a tree

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