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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. chip — to eat
  3. chip — for betting
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. cell — in biology
  15. pitch — completely
  16. rock — a stone
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. rush — hurry
  19. cell — a phone
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. perch — the fish
  22. kick — in football
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. straw — dry grass

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