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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. track — to keep track
  5. saw — the tool
  6. last — finally
  7. track — a path
  8. stock — shares
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. drill — the tool
  11. track — a song
  12. last — final
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. pit — in a race
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. drill — army training
  18. stock — goods
  19. drill — a practice
  20. saw — the tool
  21. last — to go on
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. perch — the fish
  24. stock — a soup base

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