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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. charge — a price
  3. cue — for pool
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. perch — the fish
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. cue — a signal
  8. present — a gift
  9. charge — in control
  10. wind — moving air
  11. net — for catching
  12. net — in sport
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. net — after costs
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. wind — moving air
  17. present — there
  18. charge — electricity
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. bat — the animal
  21. cue — a hint
  22. present — the time now
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. bat — for baseball

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