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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.

Make a worksheet

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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. cold — not warm
  5. plane — a tool
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. present — there
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. chair — a leader
  13. perch — the fish
  14. present — the time now
  15. cold — an illness
  16. present — a gift
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. cold — the Cold War

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