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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.

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
468
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: spell · leaves · cold · perch · pound · sharp

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. cold — an illness
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. cold — not warm
  8. sharp — clever
  9. spell — magic
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. spell — letters
  12. perch — the fish
  13. spell — a short time
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. pound — a weight
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. sharp — with an edge

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