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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. capital — money
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. capital — a city
  13. perch — the fish
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. pitch — completely
  17. tear — from crying
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. bat — the animal
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. tear — from crying
  24. tear — to rip

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