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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. saw — the tool
  3. saw — the tool
  4. cap — a lid
  5. bear — the animal
  6. cold — not warm
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. shower — rain
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. cap — of ice
  11. content — the amount
  12. perch — the fish
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. bear — the animal
  15. firm — decided
  16. firm — steady
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. shower — to wash
  21. cold — an illness
  22. cap — a hat
  23. firm — a company
  24. content — happy

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