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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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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: spring · perch · cabinet · sharp · straw · pop · game · lash

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. pop — music
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. game — wild animals
  13. spring — the season
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. pop — to visit
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. spring — a coil
  21. perch — the fish
  22. sharp — clever
  23. game — a match
  24. spring — of water

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