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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 speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. last — to go on
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. land — a country
  6. vault — a safe
  7. land — ground
  8. perch — the fish
  9. tube — a container
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. last — final
  13. file — a line of people
  14. file — a document
  15. file — a tool
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. last — finally
  18. land — to come down
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. bore — to tire
  23. bore — to drill
  24. tube — the underground

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