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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. perch — the fish
  3. court — of law
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — to cut
  7. ground — a position
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. clip — for paper
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. stem — to come from
  12. mate — to breed
  13. mate — a friend
  14. mate — a partner
  15. pit — in a race
  16. ground — the earth
  17. press — a publisher
  18. court — for sport
  19. ground — crushed
  20. pit — a hole
  21. press — newspapers
  22. court — of a king
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. press — to push

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