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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. ground — crushed
  3. ground — the earth
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. pop — music
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. bear — the animal
  10. pop — soda
  11. pop — to visit
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. ground — a position
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. cold — not warm
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bear — the animal
  21. cold — an illness
  22. chair — a leader
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. pitcher — a jug

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