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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  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. perch — for a bird
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. file — a tool
  4. key — for a lock
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. key — the most important part
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. file — a document
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. chip — for betting
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. kid — child
  17. pound — a weight
  18. key — in music
  19. kid — to tease
  20. file — a line of people
  21. perch — the fish
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. perch — for a bird
  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