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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. cell — a phone
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. clip — to cut
  6. current — of water
  7. stand — to bear
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. current — happening now
  12. pop — music
  13. tube — the underground
  14. clip — for paper
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. cell — in biology
  18. tube — a container
  19. pop — soda
  20. current — electric
  21. pop — to visit
  22. clip — a video
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. stand — for spectators

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