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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. spring — the season
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. perch — the fish
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. last — finally
  9. rush — hurry
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. foot — a measure
  12. spring — a coil
  13. court — of a king
  14. court — of law
  15. swing — music
  16. spring — of water
  17. swing — to play on
  18. court — for sport
  19. last — to go on
  20. last — final
  21. swing — in golf
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. nail — for a hammer

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