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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. capital — a city
  3. perch — the fish
  4. ball — a great time
  5. snap — to click
  6. saw — the tool
  7. bulb — for light
  8. scale — size or range
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. saw — the tool
  11. scale — in music
  12. bank — for money
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. ball — a dance
  16. bank — for money
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bank — of a river
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. capital — money

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