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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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. cell — in biology
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. face — part of the head
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. craft — boats
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. perch — the fish
  9. face — to confront
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. file — a document
  12. wax — to grow
  13. face — to point toward
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. swing — to play on
  16. file — a tool
  17. swing — in golf
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. craft — a skill
  20. swing — music
  21. cell — a phone
  22. drill — a practice
  23. drill — the tool
  24. file — a line of people

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