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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. pound — a weight
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. fall — to drop
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. perch — the fish
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. kid — to tease
  10. chest — a box
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. fall — to drop
  13. chest — of your body
  14. mate — a partner
  15. mate — to breed
  16. kid — child
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. chest — of your body
  21. fall — the season
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. mate — a friend
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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