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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 116 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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. swing — to play on
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. tube — the underground
  6. tube — a container
  7. content — the amount
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. lie — to recline
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. content — happy
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. swing — music
  20. swing — in golf
  21. perch — the fish
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. wax — to grow

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