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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. last — to go on
  4. hand — help
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. last — finally
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. bear — the animal
  9. ground — crushed
  10. season — of the year
  11. ground — the earth
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. bear — the animal
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. hand — in cards
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. track — to keep track
  18. perch — the fish
  19. last — final
  20. track — a path
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. track — a song
  23. ground — a position
  24. fan — a supporter

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