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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. bound — tied together
  3. cold — an illness
  4. perch — the fish
  5. bound — obliged
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. bear — the animal
  8. cold — not warm
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. court — of law
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. bound — certain
  13. court — for sport
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. scale — in music
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. bear — the animal
  21. scale — size or range
  22. court — of a king
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. racket — for tennis

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