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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. spring — of water
  4. last — to go on
  5. last — finally
  6. spring — a coil
  7. swing — music
  8. rest — what's left
  9. swing — to play on
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. swing — in golf
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. march — the month
  14. vault — a safe
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. rest — what's left
  17. chair — a leader
  18. rest — a break
  19. spring — the season
  20. march — music
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. last — final
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. march — the month

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