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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. last — to go on
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. fall — the season
  6. land — ground
  7. fall — to drop
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. fall — to drop
  10. perch — the fish
  11. roll — a list
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. roll — a cake
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. last — finally
  16. shower — rain
  17. land — a country
  18. shower — to wash
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. land — to come down
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. ruler — for measuring

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