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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: spell · march · file · calf · drill · perch · tear · leaves

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. file — a tool
  5. tear — from crying
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. spell — a short time
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. file — a document
  10. perch — the fish
  11. file — a line of people
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. march — the month
  14. spell — magic
  15. march — music
  16. drill — army training
  17. tear — from crying
  18. drill — a practice
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. drill — the tool
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. tear — to rip
  24. march — the month

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