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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. craft — boats
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. wind — moving air
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. sharp — clever
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. lean — thin
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. craft — a skill
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. lean — to bend
  20. wind — moving air
  21. kick — in football
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. straw — a straw man

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