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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 seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. land — a country
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. perch — the fish
  8. pitch — completely
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. land — ground
  12. key — for a lock
  13. stock — shares
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. key — the most important part
  16. stock — goods
  17. rash — a series
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. rash — hasty
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. key — in music
  24. land — to come down

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