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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 ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. season — in sport
  3. perch — the fish
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. row — to paddle
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. fine — high quality
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. season — of the year
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. last — to go on
  16. last — final
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. last — finally
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. pound — a weight
  21. row — a line
  22. fine — all right
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. row — a quarrel

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