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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. cold — an illness
  3. stand — to bear
  4. perch — the fish
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. cold — not warm
  7. mug — a face
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. mug — a cup
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. pound — a weight
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. mug — to rob

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