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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. cue — a hint
  4. cue — a signal
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. last — finally
  8. pop — to visit
  9. perch — the fish
  10. pop — music
  11. pop — soda
  12. date — the fruit
  13. last — to go on
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. cue — for pool
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. capital — a city
  21. last — final
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. ruler — for measuring

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