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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. content — the amount
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. root — of a plant
  6. plane — a tool
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. foot — a measure
  12. net — for catching
  13. root — the cause
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. content — happy
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. net — in sport
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. root — of a word
  23. net — after costs
  24. plane — in geometry

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