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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. root — of a word
  5. last — finally
  6. last — to go on
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. bound — tied together
  10. bound — certain
  11. ball — a great time
  12. root — the cause
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. last — final
  15. rush — hurry
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. perch — the fish
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. root — of a plant
  21. squash — to crush
  22. squash — the sport
  23. ball — a dance
  24. rush — a thrill

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