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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. net — in sport
  4. bat — the animal
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. saw — the tool
  11. net — after costs
  12. wax — to grow
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. net — for catching
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. perch — the fish
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. foot — a measure

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