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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. club — for golf
  3. drill — the tool
  4. swing — music
  5. drill — a practice
  6. club — a group
  7. perch — the fish
  8. swing — in golf
  9. bulb — for light
  10. bulb — for light
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. drill — army training
  13. file — a line of people
  14. file — a tool
  15. swing — to play on
  16. club — for dancing
  17. chair — a leader
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. file — a document
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rash — a series
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. rash — hasty

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