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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. track — a path
  4. chest — a box
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. season — in sport
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. perch — the fish
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. craft — a skill
  15. chest — of your body
  16. track — a song
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. row — a line
  19. craft — boats
  20. chest — of your body
  21. track — to keep track
  22. row — to paddle
  23. season — of the year
  24. vault — a safe

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