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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
468
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: bat · spell · fan · perch · row · kid · root · leaves

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. root — of a plant
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. spell — letters
  7. row — a line
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. kid — child
  10. root — of a word
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. spell — magic
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. root — the cause
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. spell — a short time
  19. row — to paddle
  20. perch — the fish
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. kid — to tease
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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