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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. tube — a container
  3. net — after costs
  4. perch — the fish
  5. court — of law
  6. cell — in biology
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. net — in sport
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. saw — the tool
  11. court — for sport
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. saw — the tool
  15. net — for catching
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. court — of a king
  19. cell — a phone
  20. mark — a trace
  21. tube — the underground
  22. mark — a grade
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. nail — for a hammer

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