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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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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: swing · pit · ruler · prune · net · tear · scale · perch

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. pit — in a race
  3. net — for catching
  4. tear — from crying
  5. scale — size or range
  6. swing — music
  7. net — after costs
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. prune — to trim
  10. tear — from crying
  11. net — in sport
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. tear — to rip
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. prune — to trim
  17. scale — in music
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. swing — to play on
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. pit — a hole
  23. swing — in golf
  24. perch — for a bird

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