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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. perch — the fish
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bore — to tire
  5. track — a song
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. track — a path
  10. track — to keep track
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. pit — in a race
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. pit — a hole
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. game — a match
  18. game — wild animals
  19. season — in sport
  20. bore — to drill
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. wind — moving air
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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