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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. wound — an injury
  3. rest — what's left
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. capital — money
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. foot — a measure
  9. rest — a break
  10. game — a match
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. wound — an injury
  13. capital — a city
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. season — of the year
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. tube — a container
  21. tube — the underground
  22. rest — what's left
  23. game — wild animals
  24. season — in sport

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