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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. dip — to sink
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. mark — a grade
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. clip — for paper
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. rest — a break
  10. last — finally
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. mark — a trace
  14. perch — the fish
  15. scale — in music
  16. clip — a video
  17. scale — size or range
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. clip — to cut
  20. last — final
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. last — to go on
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. rest — what's left

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