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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: cap · patient · last · perch · clip · can · dip · row

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. perch — the fish
  4. last — final
  5. can — to be able to
  6. last — to go on
  7. can — a tin
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. cap — a hat
  10. row — a line
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. clip — a video
  13. row — to paddle
  14. cap — a lid
  15. cap — of ice
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. clip — for paper
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. dip — to sink
  21. last — finally
  22. clip — to cut
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. perch — for a bird

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