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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. swing — music
  3. swing — in golf
  4. rash — a series
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. rule — a law
  8. last — final
  9. last — finally
  10. mate — to breed
  11. rule — government
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. mate — a friend
  15. game — a match
  16. game — wild animals
  17. swing — to play on
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. scale — size or range
  20. scale — in music
  21. mate — a partner
  22. rash — hasty
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. last — to go on

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