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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  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. pop — to visit
  2. season — in sport
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. pop — soda
  5. season — of the year
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. ball — a great time
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. file — a document
  13. cold — not warm
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. bound — certain
  17. pop — music
  18. bound — tied together
  19. file — a line of people
  20. file — a tool
  21. bound — obliged
  22. cold — an illness
  23. ball — a dance
  24. perch — the fish

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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