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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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. stem — to come from
  3. band — a music group
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. band — a ring
  6. perch — the fish
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. craft — boats
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. net — after costs
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. net — for catching
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. season — of the year
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. season — in sport
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. craft — a skill
  19. net — in sport
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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