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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 116 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 was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. cap — a lid
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. mug — a cup
  5. lean — thin
  6. shower — rain
  7. cap — a hat
  8. content — happy
  9. mug — to rob
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. mug — a face
  12. lean — to bend
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. march — the month
  15. march — the month
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. march — music
  18. ball — a dance
  19. shower — to wash
  20. perch — the fish
  21. content — the amount
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. cap — of ice
  24. ball — a round shape

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