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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. last — finally
  5. perch — the fish
  6. squash — the sport
  7. vault — a safe
  8. last — to go on
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. pop — music
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. roll — a cake
  14. wind — moving air
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. pop — soda
  17. last — final
  18. roll — a list
  19. pop — to visit
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. squash — to crush
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. wind — moving air

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