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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. present — the time now
  4. club — for golf
  5. mine — for digging
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. club — for dancing
  10. scale — size or range
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. perch — the fish
  13. club — a group
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. fork — in a road
  16. wind — moving air
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. present — a gift
  23. present — there
  24. wind — moving air

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