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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 120 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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. band — a music group
  4. march — music
  5. file — a tool
  6. mug — a cup
  7. file — a document
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. file — a line of people
  10. mug — to rob
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. mug — a face
  13. cell — a phone
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. perch — the fish
  17. content — happy
  18. march — the month
  19. band — a ring
  20. march — the month
  21. content — the amount
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. perch — for a bird

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