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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. prune — to trim
  7. perch — the fish
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. file — a tool
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. row — a line
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. file — a line of people
  16. row — to paddle
  17. deal — to handle
  18. file — a document
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. prune — to trim
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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