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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. last — finally
  5. swing — in golf
  6. can — a tin
  7. cap — a hat
  8. cap — a lid
  9. lean — thin
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. last — final
  12. rash — a series
  13. last — to go on
  14. swing — music
  15. can — a tin
  16. can — to be able to
  17. land — to come down
  18. swing — to play on
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. land — a country
  21. cap — of ice
  22. land — ground
  23. perch — the fish
  24. lean — to bend

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