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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  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. drill — a practice
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. saw — the tool
  5. cell — in biology
  6. perch — the fish
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. march — the month
  9. drill — the tool
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. swing — music
  12. cell — a phone
  13. swing — in golf
  14. swing — to play on
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. band — a music group
  17. drill — army training
  18. band — a ring
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. march — music
  22. saw — the tool
  23. march — the month
  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