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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 116 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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cold · file · patient · perch · pitcher · mouse

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. perch — the fish
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. file — a tool
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. file — a line of people
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. cold — an illness
  16. cold — not warm
  17. file — a document
  18. mouse — the animal

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