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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
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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. chest — a box
  4. kid — to tease
  5. chest — of your body
  6. saw — the tool
  7. craft — a skill
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. kid — child
  13. craft — boats
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. rock — a stone
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. saw — the tool
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. perch — the fish
  23. chest — of your body
  24. bowl — a football final

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