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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. fine — high quality
  3. rock — a stone
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. rock — music
  6. clip — for paper
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. perch — the fish
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. clip — to cut
  17. pass — a permit
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. clip — a video
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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