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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. key — in music
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. key — for a lock
  5. pop — soda
  6. perch — the fish
  7. spring — a coil
  8. spring — of water
  9. last — final
  10. last — finally
  11. key — the most important part
  12. club — for golf
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. pound — a weight
  15. spring — the season
  16. last — to go on
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. club — for dancing
  19. rest — what's left
  20. club — a group
  21. pop — music
  22. rest — what's left
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. pop — to visit

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