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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 116 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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. rest — what's left
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. land — ground
  5. charge — a price
  6. object — to protest
  7. land — to come down
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. drill — the tool
  10. charge — electricity
  11. drill — a practice
  12. perch — the fish
  13. rest — a break
  14. wake — a trail
  15. object — a thing
  16. charge — in control
  17. wound — an injury
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. drill — army training
  20. wound — an injury
  21. object — an aim
  22. rest — what's left
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. land — a country

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