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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 120 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: cabinet · arm · kid · perch · spring · court · fork · fan

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. spring — a coil
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. court — of law
  6. spring — the season
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. kid — child
  9. spring — of water
  10. court — of a king
  11. perch — the fish
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. kid — to tease
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. court — for sport
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. fork — in a road
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. arm — a part of something

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