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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. saw — the tool
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. lean — to bend
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. lean — thin
  9. last — to go on
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. kick — in football
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. bound — certain
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. bound — obliged
  19. last — finally
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. deal — to handle
  22. last — final
  23. saw — the tool
  24. bound — tied together

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