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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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. hand — help
  3. march — the month
  4. capital — a city
  5. track — to keep track
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. rash — hasty
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. hand — in cards
  11. track — a path
  12. rash — a series
  13. track — a song
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. march — music
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. march — the month
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. perch — the fish
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. capital — money

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