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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. pop — music
  3. rock — a stone
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. pop — soda
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. tube — the underground
  9. race — the arms race
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. game — wild animals
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. race — humankind
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. tube — a container
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. race — a contest
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. game — a match
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. rock — music
  23. pop — to visit
  24. bat — the animal

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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