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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. season — in sport
  5. track — a song
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. track — to keep track
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. tube — a container
  10. rash — hasty
  11. rash — a series
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. chair — a leader
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. track — a path
  18. date — the fruit
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. tube — the underground
  21. season — of the year
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. perch — the fish
  24. chair — to sit on

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