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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. mate — a partner
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. squash — the sport
  6. last — to go on
  7. pitch — completely
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. object — an aim
  11. object — to protest
  12. squash — to crush
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. mate — a friend
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. season — in sport
  17. last — finally
  18. last — final
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. object — a thing
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. season — of the year
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. mate — to breed

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