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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 120 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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. She's very handy with 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 — for a bird
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. cold — not warm
  5. vault — a safe
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. cold — an illness
  8. net — in sport
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. rest — a break
  11. saw — the tool
  12. net — for catching
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. rest — what's left
  17. stand — to bear
  18. perch — the fish
  19. rest — what's left
  20. net — after costs
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. saw — the tool
  24. stand — for spectators

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