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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. snap — to click
  3. mate — a partner
  4. mate — to breed
  5. clip — for paper
  6. board — to get on
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. mug — a cup
  9. mug — a face
  10. board — a committee
  11. cap — of ice
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. mug — to rob
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. clip — to cut
  16. cap — a lid
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. mate — a friend
  19. clip — a video
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. cap — a hat
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. dip — to sink

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