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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 120 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: mate · pitcher · perch · plane · pass · squash · tear · net

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. pass — a permit
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. tear — to rip
  6. net — after costs
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. squash — the sport
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. mate — a partner
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. mate — to breed
  17. net — for catching
  18. tear — from crying
  19. mate — a friend
  20. plane — a tool
  21. squash — to crush
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. net — in sport
  24. tear — from crying

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