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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. track — a path
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. hand — help
  5. perch — the fish
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. pound — a weight
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. track — a song
  14. scale — size or range
  15. hand — in cards
  16. bulb — for light
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. track — to keep track
  19. bulb — for light
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. scale — in music
  24. perch — for a bird

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