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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. object — an aim
  4. pop — soda
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bass — low music
  7. perch — the fish
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. capital — money
  10. pop — music
  11. bass — the fish
  12. object — to protest
  13. season — of the year
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. capital — a city
  17. pop — to visit
  18. rush — hurry
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. shower — to wash
  21. season — in sport
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. object — a thing
  24. shower — rain

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