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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. board — to get on
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. rock — music
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. cell — a phone
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. board — a committee
  13. rock — a stone
  14. lie — to recline
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. chip — to eat
  17. perch — the fish
  18. chip — for betting
  19. cell — in biology
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. chair — a leader
  22. tube — a container
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. tube — the underground

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