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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. perch — the fish
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. vault — a safe
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. wake — a trail
  11. kick — in football
  12. current — happening now
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. cold — not warm
  15. current — of water
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. content — happy
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. cold — an illness
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. content — the amount
  23. current — electric
  24. rush — hurry

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