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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. squash — the sport
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. file — a line of people
  8. shower — rain
  9. game — wild animals
  10. shower — to wash
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. squash — to crush
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. perch — the fish
  16. rush — hurry
  17. game — a match
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. march — music
  21. file — a tool
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. file — a document
  24. march — the month

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