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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. rush — hurry
  3. cap — of ice
  4. row — a line
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. row — to paddle
  7. bound — obliged
  8. race — a contest
  9. file — a tool
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. bound — tied together
  12. cap — a lid
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. cap — a hat
  16. race — humankind
  17. file — a line of people
  18. bound — certain
  19. race — the arms race
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. perch — the fish
  22. file — a document
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. perch — for a bird

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