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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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. rash — hasty
  3. track — a path
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. capital — money
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. track — to keep track
  16. perch — the fish
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. track — a song
  20. capital — a city
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. rash — a series
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. wax — to grow

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