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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: stem · wake · hand · rash · spell · perch · dip · roll

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. spell — a short time
  6. roll — a cake
  7. perch — the fish
  8. spell — letters
  9. roll — a list
  10. wake — a trail
  11. hand — help
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. spell — magic
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. rash — a series
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. hand — in cards
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. stem — to come from
  22. rash — hasty
  23. dip — to sink
  24. wake — before a funeral

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