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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. perch — the fish
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. foot — a measure
  7. season — in sport
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. rule — a law
  15. wind — moving air
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. scale — size or range
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. scale — in music
  22. rule — government
  23. season — of the year
  24. wind — moving air

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