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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 116 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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. chair — a leader
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. last — to go on
  6. present — the time now
  7. present — a gift
  8. snap — to click
  9. last — final
  10. pound — a weight
  11. cell — in biology
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. present — there
  16. perch — the fish
  17. last — finally
  18. cell — a phone
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. nail — on a finger

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