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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. perch — the fish
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. bore — to drill
  6. net — for catching
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. net — in sport
  10. chair — a leader
  11. ground — crushed
  12. rush — hurry
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. ground — the earth
  15. bore — to tire
  16. pit — a hole
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. net — after costs
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. cell — in biology
  21. pit — in a race
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. cell — a phone
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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