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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. squash — to crush
  3. pass — a permit
  4. perch — the fish
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. court — of law
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. court — of a king
  12. court — for sport
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. fork — in a road
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. cell — a phone
  23. cell — in biology
  24. trunk — of a tree

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