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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. wax — to grow
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. perch — the fish
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. rest — what's left
  7. ball — a great time
  8. present — there
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. rest — what's left
  11. row — to paddle
  12. scale — in music
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. scale — size or range
  16. rest — a break
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. present — the time now
  21. ball — a dance
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. row — a line
  24. temple — a place of worship

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