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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. suit — in cards
  5. season — of the year
  6. shower — rain
  7. clip — a video
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. suit — clothes
  10. perch — the fish
  11. shower — to wash
  12. season — in sport
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. clip — for paper
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. kid — to tease
  19. mark — a trace
  20. mark — a grade
  21. kid — child
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. suit — to fit
  24. clip — to cut

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