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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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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. chest — a box
  3. spell — magic
  4. present — the time now
  5. present — a gift
  6. march — the month
  7. net — in sport
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. spell — letters
  10. march — music
  11. chest — of your body
  12. march — the month
  13. chest — of your body
  14. present — there
  15. net — for catching
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. spell — a short time
  18. net — after costs

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