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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. capital — money
  5. bank — of a river
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. wound — an injury
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. wound — an injury
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. hand — in cards
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. perch — the fish
  14. capital — a city
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. bank — for money
  19. plane — a tool
  20. bank — for money
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. hand — help
  24. plane — an aircraft

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