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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. last — to go on
  4. rock — a stone
  5. spring — of water
  6. present — a gift
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. last — finally
  9. mate — a friend
  10. mate — to breed
  11. perch — the fish
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. game — wild animals
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. game — a match
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. mate — a partner
  19. spring — the season
  20. present — the time now
  21. spring — a coil
  22. present — there
  23. last — final
  24. foot — a measure

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