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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 120 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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. row — a line
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. chest — of your body
  6. last — to go on
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. last — finally
  10. stock — shares
  11. perch — the fish
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. last — final
  14. chest — a box
  15. ball — a dance
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. row — to paddle
  20. ball — a great time
  21. stock — goods
  22. chest — of your body
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. wave — with your hand

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