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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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. mark — a trace
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. shower — rain
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. kick — in football
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. last — to go on
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. last — finally
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. hand — help
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. foot — a measure
  17. last — final
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. shower — to wash
  21. perch — the fish
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. hand — in cards
  24. mark — a grade

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