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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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. content — happy
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. present — there
  6. snap — to click
  7. scale — in music
  8. charge — electricity
  9. present — the time now
  10. charge — a price
  11. charge — in control
  12. track — a path
  13. net — in sport
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. net — for catching
  16. present — a gift
  17. net — after costs
  18. perch — the fish
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. scale — size or range
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. content — the amount
  23. track — a song
  24. track — to keep track

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