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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 120 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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. perch — the fish
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. hand — help
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. swing — to play on
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. hand — in cards
  14. swing — music
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. swing — in golf
  21. march — the month
  22. cold — not warm
  23. march — music
  24. cold — an illness

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