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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  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. season — of the year
  2. kid — child
  3. club — a group
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. land — ground
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. hand — in cards
  8. land — to come down
  9. club — for dancing
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. pit — a hole
  13. perch — the fish
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. season — in sport
  17. land — a country
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. kid — to tease
  21. hand — help
  22. club — for golf
  23. pit — in a race
  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