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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. cap — a lid
  3. drill — army training
  4. cap — a hat
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. present — the time now
  7. perch — the fish
  8. present — a gift
  9. chair — a leader
  10. drill — a practice
  11. land — to come down
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. clip — a video
  15. land — ground
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. clip — for paper
  18. cap — of ice
  19. clip — to cut
  20. land — a country
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. present — there
  23. chair — a professorship
  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