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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.

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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: perch · craft · shower · lash · mate · leaves · capital · cell

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. capital — a city
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. capital — money
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. craft — a skill
  10. mate — a friend
  11. cell — in biology
  12. perch — the fish
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. craft — boats
  15. shower — to wash
  16. shower — rain
  17. mate — to breed
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. cell — a phone
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. mate — a partner
  24. craft — a handicraft

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