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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. content — happy
  9. perch — the fish
  10. march — music
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. kick — in football
  14. toast — bread
  15. content — the amount
  16. march — the month
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. shower — rain
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. shower — to wash
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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