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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. mine — for digging
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. scale — size or range
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. drill — a practice
  10. scale — in music
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. foot — a measure
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. drill — the tool
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. cell — in biology
  19. drill — army training
  20. perch — the fish
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. cell — a phone
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. kick — in football

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