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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. present — there
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. bear — the animal
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. bear — the animal
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. present — a gift
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. mark — a grade
  12. ground — the earth
  13. mine — for digging
  14. mark — a trace
  15. present — the time now
  16. capital — money
  17. ground — a position
  18. ground — crushed
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. capital — a city
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. mark — to pay attention

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