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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. perch — the fish
  4. vault — a safe
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. hand — in cards
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — moving air
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. bound — obliged
  19. row — to paddle
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. bound — tied together
  22. bound — certain
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. row — a line

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