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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 116 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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. bat — the animal
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. stock — goods
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. march — the month
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. march — music
  9. march — the month
  10. drill — a practice
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. rash — a series
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. perch — the fish
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. drill — the tool
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. rash — hasty
  20. stock — shares
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. drill — army training

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