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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. swing — to play on
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. swing — in golf
  5. cold — not warm
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. saw — the tool
  9. toast — bread
  10. net — in sport
  11. net — after costs
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. net — for catching
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. wind — moving air
  20. swing — music
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. cold — an illness
  23. saw — the tool
  24. perch — the fish

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