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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. capital — money
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. perch — the fish
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. pop — to visit
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. pop — soda
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. capital — a city
  13. pop — music
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. kid — to tease
  20. kick — in football
  21. kid — child
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. wake — a trail
  24. nail — on a finger

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