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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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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: plane · mug · wake · fall · present · race · saw · perch

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. mug — a face
  3. fall — to drop
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. race — the arms race
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. fall — the season
  10. mug — a cup
  11. perch — the fish
  12. present — the time now
  13. wake — a trail
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. saw — the tool
  16. race — a contest
  17. mug — to rob
  18. fall — to drop
  19. present — a gift
  20. plane — a tool
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. race — humankind
  23. present — there
  24. saw — the tool

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