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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. saw — the tool
  3. court — for sport
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. prune — to trim
  6. perch — the fish
  7. staff — employees
  8. last — to go on
  9. prune — to trim
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. last — final
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. mate — a partner
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. saw — the tool
  18. last — finally
  19. court — of a king
  20. staff — a stick
  21. mate — a friend
  22. court — of law
  23. staff — employees
  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