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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 surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. band — a music group
  5. season — in sport
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. vault — a safe
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. season — of the year
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cold — not warm
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. band — a ring
  17. fine — all right
  18. fine — high quality
  19. perch — the fish
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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