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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.

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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: bore · cell · leaves · prune · perch · fan · deal · bat

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. perch — the fish
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. cell — in biology
  7. prune — to trim
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. bore — to tire
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. bore — to drill
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. deal — to handle
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bat — the animal
  22. cell — a phone
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. leaves — of a tree

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