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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 newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. wind — moving air
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. land — ground
  6. last — final
  7. land — a country
  8. foot — a measure
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. wind — moving air
  11. perch — the fish
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. land — to come down
  15. row — a line
  16. rock — music
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. dip — to sink
  20. row — to paddle
  21. last — to go on
  22. rock — a stone
  23. last — finally
  24. row — a quarrel

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