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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 that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. bat — the animal
  4. rest — a break
  5. saw — the tool
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. rash — a series
  9. mug — a cup
  10. mug — to rob
  11. rash — hasty
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. perch — the fish
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. rest — what's left
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. saw — the tool
  24. coach — a trainer

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