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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: hide · clip · perch · chair · wave · craft · saw · prune

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. clip — for paper
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. prune — to trim
  10. saw — the tool
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. perch — the fish
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. chair — a leader
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. craft — boats
  20. clip — a video
  21. clip — to cut
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. craft — a skill
  24. saw — the tool

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