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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. cell — in biology
  3. scale — in music
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. suit — in cards
  6. land — ground
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. kid — to tease
  9. march — the month
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. land — a country
  13. kid — child
  14. suit — clothes
  15. rest — what's left
  16. perch — the fish
  17. march — the month
  18. scale — size or range
  19. land — to come down
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. march — music
  22. rest — a break
  23. suit — to fit
  24. cell — a phone

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