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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. mate — a partner
  4. net — after costs
  5. mate — to breed
  6. bat — the animal
  7. wax — to grow
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. bound — certain
  10. bound — tied together
  11. net — for catching
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. mug — a cup
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. mug — a face
  17. mate — a friend
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. net — in sport
  21. chair — a leader
  22. mug — to rob
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. bound — obliged

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