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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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. march — the month
  3. ground — a position
  4. ground — crushed
  5. march — the month
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bear — the animal
  8. last — finally
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. bat — the animal
  11. swing — to play on
  12. last — final
  13. perch — the fish
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. bass — low music
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. swing — music
  19. march — music
  20. swing — in golf
  21. last — to go on
  22. bear — the animal
  23. ground — the earth
  24. bat — in an idiom

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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