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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. cell — a phone
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. stock — shares
  9. mug — to rob
  10. mug — a cup
  11. craft — boats
  12. mug — a face
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. stock — goods
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. craft — a skill
  18. perch — the fish
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. wound — an injury
  22. cell — in biology
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. wound — an injury

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