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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. present — there
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fall — the season
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. game — wild animals
  9. scale — size or range
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. scale — in music
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. lie — to recline
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. perch — the fish
  16. game — a match
  17. fall — to drop
  18. wake — a trail
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. present — the time now
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. present — a gift
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bat — for baseball

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