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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. squash — to crush
  3. row — to paddle
  4. kid — to tease
  5. pitch — completely
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. land — a country
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. season — of the year
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. season — in sport
  12. land — to come down
  13. land — ground
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. kick — in football
  16. perch — the fish
  17. kid — child
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. squash — the sport
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. season — to add flavour

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