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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. last — to go on
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. march — the month
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. content — the amount
  10. march — music
  11. last — finally
  12. content — happy
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. perch — the fish
  17. scale — size or range
  18. march — the month
  19. cell — in biology
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. dip — to sink
  23. scale — in music
  24. last — final

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