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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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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. land — a country
  3. chair — a leader
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. capital — money
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. wake — a trail
  9. land — ground
  10. rest — a break
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. capital — a city
  19. rest — what's left
  20. land — to come down
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. rest — what's left
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. perch — the fish

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