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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 124 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. pop — to visit
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. pop — music
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. wound — an injury
  11. pop — soda
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. wound — an injury
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. wind — moving air
  19. perch — the fish
  20. wind — moving air
  21. deal — to handle
  22. season — in sport
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. season — to add flavour

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