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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. face — to point toward
  3. roll — a list
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. band — a ring
  6. pit — in a race
  7. perch — the fish
  8. face — to confront
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. band — a music group
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. track — to keep track
  13. pit — a hole
  14. kick — in football
  15. face — part of the head
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. drill — army training
  19. track — a path
  20. drill — the tool
  21. drill — a practice
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. track — a song
  24. kick — a thrill

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