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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: tear · wave · hide · toast · land · perch · clip · pitcher

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. toast — bread
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. land — a country
  6. clip — for paper
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. land — to come down
  9. clip — a video
  10. land — ground
  11. tear — from crying
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. perch — the fish
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. clip — to cut
  16. tear — from crying
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. tear — to rip
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. pitcher — a jug

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