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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. rock — music
  3. swing — music
  4. game — a match
  5. bass — the fish
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. swing — in golf
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. cell — in biology
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. bass — low music
  12. rock — a stone
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. swing — to play on
  16. perch — the fish
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. cell — a phone
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. game — wild animals
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. wake — a trail
  24. perch — for a bird

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