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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 black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. mate — to breed
  3. cold — not warm
  4. swing — to play on
  5. perch — the fish
  6. swing — in golf
  7. mate — a friend
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. cold — an illness
  10. plane — a tool
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. ball — a great time
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. swing — music
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. ball — a dance
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. mate — a partner
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. bear — the animal
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. plane — an aircraft

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