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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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. cap — a lid
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. cap — a hat
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. spring — the season
  9. court — of law
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. tube — a container
  15. tube — the underground
  16. court — of a king
  17. plane — a tool
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. court — for sport
  20. cap — of ice
  21. perch — the fish
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. spring — a coil
  24. spring — of water

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