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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. cold — an illness
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. mine — for digging
  15. cold — not warm
  16. perch — the fish
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. stand — to bear

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