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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: saw · perch · mate · scale · cell · dip · rule · firm

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. saw — the tool
  3. firm — a company
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. mate — a partner
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. firm — decided
  8. mate — a friend
  9. firm — steady
  10. cell — a phone
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. dip — to sink
  13. cell — in biology
  14. saw — the tool
  15. mate — to breed
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. rule — government
  18. perch — the fish
  19. scale — in music
  20. rule — a law
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. scale — size or range
  24. dip — a sauce

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