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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. charge — a price
  3. ball — a great time
  4. toast — bread
  5. ball — a dance
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. cold — not warm
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. cold — an illness
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. file — a tool
  12. charge — in control
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. tube — the underground
  20. file — a line of people
  21. charge — electricity
  22. file — a document
  23. tube — a container
  24. perch — the fish

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