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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. chip — for betting
  5. mate — a partner
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. rash — a series
  10. perch — the fish
  11. kick — in football
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. bat — the animal
  14. march — the month
  15. mate — a friend
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. rash — hasty
  20. march — the month
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. march — music
  24. chip — to eat

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