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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 ________________ took off on time.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. perch — the fish
  3. race — a contest
  4. net — in sport
  5. race — humankind
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. season — of the year
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. hand — in cards
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wax — to grow
  13. net — for catching
  14. kick — in football
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. plane — a tool
  18. season — in sport
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. net — after costs
  21. race — the arms race
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. hand — help
  24. plane — in geometry

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