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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. sharp — clever
  7. fall — to drop
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. perch — the fish
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. kid — to tease
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fall — to drop
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. fall — the season
  21. row — a line
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. kid — child
  24. fan — to cool the air

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