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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. tear — from crying
  4. perch — the fish
  5. tear — from crying
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. content — the amount
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. bear — the animal
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. wake — a trail
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. tear — to rip
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. game — a match
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bear — the animal
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. content — happy
  24. game — wild animals

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