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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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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: perch · sharp · shower · nail · club · lean · patient · march

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. shower — to wash
  3. club — for dancing
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. march — music
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. march — the month
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. march — the month
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. lean — to bend
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. club — a group
  16. club — for golf
  17. lean — thin
  18. perch — the fish
  19. sharp — clever
  20. shower — rain
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. patient — a sick person

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