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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.

Make a worksheet

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: sharp · fan · arm · mouse · perch · clip · bark · squash

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. perch — the fish
  3. sharp — clever
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. clip — to cut
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. squash — to crush
  18. clip — a video
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. bark — to shout
  21. clip — for paper
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. mouse — for a computer

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