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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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. hand — help
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. perch — the fish
  8. hand — in cards
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. squash — the sport
  12. squash — to crush
  13. craft — boats
  14. toast — bread
  15. tube — the underground
  16. craft — a skill
  17. land — ground
  18. tube — a container
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. stem — to come from
  21. land — a country
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. land — to come down

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