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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.

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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: dip · lash · perch · cap · bear · land · cold · ruler

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. land — to come down
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. land — a country
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cap — of ice
  10. land — ground
  11. cold — an illness
  12. bear — the animal
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. cap — a hat
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. perch — the fish
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. dip — to sink
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. ruler — for measuring

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