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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. perch — the fish
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. clip — to cut
  5. wax — to grow
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. rock — a stone
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. row — to paddle
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. craft — a skill
  15. fork — in a road
  16. season — of the year
  17. season — in sport
  18. rock — music
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. craft — boats
  21. clip — a video
  22. clip — for paper
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. row — a line

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