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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. chest — of your body
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. chest — a box
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. march — music
  7. ground — a position
  8. mark — a trace
  9. bulb — for light
  10. chest — of your body
  11. march — the month
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. rash — hasty
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. perch — the fish
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. rash — a series
  20. ground — crushed
  21. march — the month
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. ground — the earth
  24. nail — for a hammer

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