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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 don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. net — in sport
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. pop — to visit
  7. clip — a video
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. pop — music
  10. clip — for paper
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. clip — to cut
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. perch — the fish
  15. cell — a phone
  16. net — for catching
  17. net — after costs
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. rock — a stone
  20. cell — in biology
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. pop — soda
  23. rock — music
  24. perch — for a bird

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