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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.

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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. club — for dancing
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. spell — a short time
  6. cell — in biology
  7. rash — a series
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. suit — in cards
  10. suit — to fit
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. spell — magic
  13. cell — a phone
  14. club — a group
  15. chair — a leader
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. season — of the year
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. spell — letters
  20. suit — clothes
  21. season — in sport
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. perch — the fish
  24. club — for golf

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