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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. pit — in a race
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. row — to paddle
  6. court — for sport
  7. rash — hasty
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. court — of a king
  10. spring — the season
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. spring — of water
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. row — a line
  15. spring — a coil
  16. pit — a hole
  17. perch — the fish
  18. court — of law
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. rash — a series
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. perch — for a bird

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