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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. bat — the animal
  3. perch — the fish
  4. court — of law
  5. pop — music
  6. band — a ring
  7. court — of a king
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. pop — to visit
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. court — for sport
  14. band — a music group
  15. wake — a trail
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. spell — letters
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. spell — a short time
  21. pop — soda
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. spell — magic
  24. nail — on a finger

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