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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. season — in sport
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. season — of the year
  6. wound — an injury
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. ball — a great time
  9. charge — a price
  10. cold — not warm
  11. charge — in control
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. squash — to crush
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. wound — an injury
  18. ball — a dance
  19. perch — the fish
  20. cold — an illness
  21. squash — the sport
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. charge — electricity
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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