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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: root · perch · club · saw · wound · shower · mouse · chest

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. club — a group
  3. wound — an injury
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. shower — to wash
  8. club — for dancing
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. root — of a plant
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. root — of a word
  14. chest — a box
  15. chest — of your body
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. root — the cause
  18. club — for golf
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. chest — of your body
  21. saw — the tool
  22. wound — an injury
  23. saw — the tool
  24. shower — rain

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