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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  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. perch — for a bird
  2. band — a ring
  3. last — finally
  4. perch — the fish
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. band — a music group
  7. lie — to recline
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. sharp — clever
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. last — to go on
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. last — final
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. bat — the animal
  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