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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. wind — moving air
  7. rash — a series
  8. band — a ring
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. date — the fruit
  13. rash — hasty
  14. band — a music group
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. wave — with your hand

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