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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. roll — a cake
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. rash — a series
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. rash — hasty
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. chair — a leader
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. net — in sport
  17. perch — the fish
  18. net — for catching
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. roll — a list
  23. net — after costs
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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