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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. bound — certain
  3. land — ground
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. land — a country
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. saw — the tool
  8. bound — obliged
  9. rest — a break
  10. rest — what's left
  11. mark — a trace
  12. saw — the tool
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. bound — tied together
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. land — to come down
  18. mark — a grade
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. snap — to click
  24. rest — what's left

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