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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. snap — to click
  3. season — of the year
  4. mate — to breed
  5. chip — to eat
  6. mate — a partner
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. chip — for betting
  9. vault — a safe
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. mate — a friend
  12. saw — the tool
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. saw — the tool
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. wound — an injury
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. wound — an injury
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. season — in sport

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