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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. suit — to fit
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. club — for golf
  6. mate — a friend
  7. clip — to cut
  8. suit — clothes
  9. clip — a video
  10. clip — for paper
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. mate — a partner
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. club — a group
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. cold — not warm
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. row — to paddle
  19. suit — in cards
  20. mate — to breed
  21. perch — the fish
  22. club — for dancing
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. row — a line

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