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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 120 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.

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: can · wake · perch · mate · mine · straw · sharp · swing

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. sharp — clever
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. can — to be able to
  7. swing — music
  8. perch — the fish
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. can — a tin
  12. mate — to breed
  13. wake — a trail
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. can — a tin
  16. mine — for digging
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. swing — in golf
  21. mate — a partner
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. mate — a friend

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