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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. present — a gift
  3. game — wild animals
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. court — of a king
  6. court — for sport
  7. game — a match
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. present — the time now
  10. last — finally
  11. present — there
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. perch — the fish
  15. last — to go on
  16. mug — to rob
  17. fine — all right
  18. stem — to come from
  19. last — final
  20. mug — a cup
  21. fine — high quality
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. mug — a face
  24. court — of law

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