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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. band — a music group
  3. last — to go on
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. last — final
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. bass — the fish
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. stem — to come from
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. board — a committee
  17. board — to get on
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. band — a ring
  20. perch — the fish
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. bass — low music
  24. bass — the instrument

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