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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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. pop — to visit
  6. perch — the fish
  7. game — wild animals
  8. cap — of ice
  9. cap — a hat
  10. mine — for digging
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. stock — shares
  13. pop — soda
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. pop — music
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. stock — goods
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. game — a match
  23. cap — a lid
  24. coach — a trainer

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