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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.

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: dip · racket · cold · spell · bay · perch · lean · spring

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. spell — magic
  3. cold — an illness
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. lean — thin
  7. spring — of water
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. spring — the season
  10. dip — to sink
  11. lean — to bend
  12. spring — a coil
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. spell — a short time
  16. cold — not warm
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. spell — letters
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. perch — the fish

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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