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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 116 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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. rest — what's left
  4. court — of law
  5. pass — a permit
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. pit — in a race
  8. rest — a break
  9. rest — what's left
  10. pit — a hole
  11. pop — to visit
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. pop — music
  14. court — of a king
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. court — for sport
  17. cold — an illness
  18. cold — not warm
  19. pop — soda
  20. perch — the fish
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. fan — to cool the air

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