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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. present — there
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. wake — a trail
  6. tear — to rip
  7. chair — a leader
  8. perch — the fish
  9. date — the fruit
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. present — the time now
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. tear — from crying
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. tear — from crying
  20. stock — shares
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. stock — goods
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. perch — for a bird

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