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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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. pit — a hole
  3. perch — the fish
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. ground — a position
  6. rash — a series
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. sharp — clever
  12. bat — the animal
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. rash — hasty
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. ground — the earth
  22. snap — to click
  23. ground — crushed
  24. straw — a straw man

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