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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 120 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: hide · file · fork · perch · bat · last · pound · sharp

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. last — finally
  3. pound — a weight
  4. file — a document
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. file — a tool
  11. file — a line of people
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. bat — the animal
  14. fork — in a road
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. last — final
  19. perch — the fish
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. last — to go on
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. sharp — clever

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