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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. bear — the animal
  4. march — the month
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. bear — the animal
  8. content — happy
  9. march — the month
  10. perch — the fish
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. track — to keep track
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. track — a path
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. content — the amount
  18. march — music
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. pitch — completely
  24. pitch — a sports field

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