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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  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. perch — for a bird
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. row — to paddle
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. perch — the fish
  15. land — a country
  16. date — the fruit
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. row — a line
  21. wound — an injury
  22. land — ground
  23. land — to come down
  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