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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. last — final
  3. last — to go on
  4. perch — the fish
  5. lean — to bend
  6. rock — music
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. present — a gift
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. kid — to tease
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. present — there
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. last — finally
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. present — the time now
  19. season — of the year
  20. lean — thin
  21. rock — a stone
  22. sharp — clever
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. kid — child

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