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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. can — a tin
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. cold — not warm
  9. can — a tin
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. can — to be able to
  13. board — a committee
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. scale — in music
  16. board — to get on
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. object — an aim
  20. object — a thing
  21. object — to protest
  22. scale — size or range
  23. cold — an illness
  24. perch — the fish

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