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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. rush — hurry
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. can — a tin
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. ball — a great time
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. land — a country
  12. perch — the fish
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. land — ground
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. roll — a cake
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. roll — a list
  20. pitch — completely
  21. ball — a dance
  22. land — to come down
  23. can — a tin
  24. pitch — a sports field

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