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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 116 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: perch · hide · rock · cell · track · tear · season · squash

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. perch — the fish
  5. season — of the year
  6. squash — the sport
  7. rock — a stone
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. season — in sport
  11. tear — from crying
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. tear — to rip
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. track — to keep track
  16. tear — from crying
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cell — a phone
  19. squash — to crush
  20. track — a path
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. rock — music
  24. track — a song

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