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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: rest · fan · track · sharp · land · dip · lean · perch

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  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. land — ground
  2. rest — what's left
  3. perch — the fish
  4. rest — what's left
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. track — a song
  9. lean — thin
  10. track — a path
  11. sharp — clever
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. dip — to sink
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. lean — to bend
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. land — a country
  18. track — to keep track
  19. rest — a break
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. land — to come down
  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