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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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Word bank
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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. clip — for paper
  6. perch — the fish
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — a coil
  10. swing — to play on
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. clip — to cut
  14. mark — a trace
  15. swing — music
  16. swing — in golf
  17. spring — of water
  18. clip — a video
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. pit — in a race
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. mark — a grade
  23. kick — in football
  24. mark — to pay attention

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