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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 116 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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. bound — certain
  3. perch — the fish
  4. lean — thin
  5. bound — tied together
  6. cue — a signal
  7. land — a country
  8. cue — for pool
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. land — to come down
  13. lean — to bend
  14. cue — a hint
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. bound — obliged
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. trunk — 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