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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: mate · rule · saw · game · row · perch · leaves · fork

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. row — a line
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. fork — in a road
  6. mate — to breed
  7. saw — the tool
  8. game — a match
  9. rule — a law
  10. mate — a friend
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. rule — government
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. mate — a partner
  18. row — to paddle
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. saw — the tool
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. game — wild animals
  24. leaves — of a tree

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