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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. cold — an illness
  4. chest — a box
  5. present — there
  6. chest — of your body
  7. branch — a division
  8. craft — a skill
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. craft — boats
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. mug — to rob
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. perch — the fish
  17. wind — moving air
  18. mug — a cup
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. mug — a face
  22. chest — of your body
  23. cold — not warm
  24. present — a gift

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