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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. march — the month
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. roll — a list
  6. lean — to bend
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. perch — the fish
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. shower — to wash
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. shower — rain
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. march — music
  17. march — the month
  18. rule — government
  19. game — wild animals
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. rule — a law
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. lean — thin
  24. game — a match

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