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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. court — of a king
  4. perch — the fish
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. spell — letters
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. spell — magic
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. court — of law
  11. shower — to wash
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. court — for sport
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. pound — a weight
  16. rule — a law
  17. spell — a short time
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. tube — a container
  20. tube — the underground
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. toast — bread
  23. rule — government
  24. shower — rain

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