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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. track — to keep track
  5. drill — the tool
  6. chest — a box
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. perch — the fish
  9. chest — of your body
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. net — in sport
  12. track — a path
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. drill — army training
  15. net — for catching
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. track — a song
  18. wound — an injury
  19. chest — of your body
  20. pass — a permit
  21. wound — an injury
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. drill — a practice
  24. net — after costs

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