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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. cell — a phone
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. content — the amount
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. season — in sport
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. bat — the animal
  17. chair — a leader
  18. cell — in biology
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. content — happy
  21. perch — the fish
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. chair — a professorship

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