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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 120 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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. perch — the fish
  4. chip — to eat
  5. present — a gift
  6. chip — for betting
  7. present — the time now
  8. ball — a dance
  9. present — there
  10. squash — the sport
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. ground — a position
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. ground — crushed
  15. row — a line
  16. shower — to wash
  17. squash — to crush
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. ground — the earth
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. ball — a great time
  22. row — to paddle
  23. shower — rain
  24. squash — the vegetable

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