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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 116 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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. last — to go on
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. last — finally
  5. spell — magic
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. chair — a leader
  8. firm — decided
  9. perch — the fish
  10. firm — steady
  11. bore — to tire
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. hand — in cards
  17. last — final
  18. spell — letters
  19. bore — to drill
  20. spell — a short time
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. firm — a company
  23. pound — a weight
  24. perch — for a bird

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