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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 116 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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. firm — steady
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. clip — a video
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. firm — decided
  8. hand — in cards
  9. mark — a grade
  10. tear — from crying
  11. firm — a company
  12. hand — help
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. tear — from crying
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. clip — to cut
  18. perch — the fish
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. tear — to rip
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. clip — for paper
  24. mark — a trace

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