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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. cap — a lid
  3. roll — a cake
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. perch — the fish
  6. roll — a list
  7. file — a document
  8. swing — in golf
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cap — of ice
  11. swing — music
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. file — a tool
  14. file — a line of people
  15. race — a contest
  16. race — humankind
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. wake — a trail
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. race — the arms race
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cap — a hat
  24. swing — to play on

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