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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.

Make a worksheet

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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. ball — a dance
  5. stand — to bear
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. clip — for paper
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. clip — to cut
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. spring — a coil
  16. chair — a leader
  17. spring — the season
  18. ball — a great time
  19. clip — a video
  20. sharp — clever
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. perch — the fish
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. spring — of water

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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