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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: spring · stick · kid · squash · march · racket · perch · shower

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. shower — rain
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. kid — to tease
  8. kid — child
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. march — music
  11. march — the month
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. squash — the sport
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. spring — of water
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. spring — a coil
  20. spring — the season
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. shower — to wash
  23. squash — to crush
  24. march — the month

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