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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
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: perch · lean · shower · rule · squash · bat · present · hand

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. present — the time now
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. present — a gift
  6. shower — rain
  7. shower — to wash
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. present — there
  10. squash — to crush
  11. hand — help
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. lean — to bend
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. rule — government
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. bat — the animal
  20. hand — in cards
  21. squash — the sport
  22. perch — the fish
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. rule — a law

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