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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: pop · spell · bay · perch · date · snap · track · leaves

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. snap — to click
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. date — the fruit
  8. track — a song
  9. track — a path
  10. spell — a short time
  11. track — to keep track
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. pop — music
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. pop — to visit
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. spell — magic
  23. spell — letters
  24. pop — soda

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