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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. cap — a hat
  5. bass — low music
  6. cap — a lid
  7. court — for sport
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. board — to get on
  11. cap — of ice
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. court — of law
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. board — a committee
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. file — a line of people
  19. bass — the fish
  20. file — a tool
  21. file — a document
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. perch — the fish

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