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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 116 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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. root — the cause
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — to rip
  5. file — a line of people
  6. clip — for paper
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. root — of a word
  9. file — a document
  10. fork — in a road
  11. firm — steady
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. clip — a video
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. firm — decided
  17. file — a tool
  18. root — of a plant
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. tear — from crying
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. plane — a tool
  23. clip — to cut
  24. firm — a company

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