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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: snap · face · perch · saw · row · patient · shower · ball

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. perch — the fish
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. shower — rain
  5. shower — to wash
  6. ball — a dance
  7. ball — a great time
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. saw — the tool
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. face — to confront
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. saw — the tool
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. face — to point toward
  20. row — a line
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. snap — to click
  23. row — to paddle
  24. face — part of the head

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