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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. net — for catching
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. rush — hurry
  9. roll — a list
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. perch — the fish
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. roll — a cake
  15. bat — the animal
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. net — after costs
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. net — in sport
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. calf — of the leg

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