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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: temple · kid · perch · clip · object · band · wave · spell

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. Hold the papers together 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. spell — letters
  3. kid — to tease
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. band — a music group
  7. object — a thing
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. band — a ring
  10. object — to protest
  11. spell — magic
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. object — an aim
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. clip — a video
  18. kid — child
  19. spell — a short time
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. clip — to cut
  23. perch — the fish
  24. clip — for paper

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