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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. cold — an illness
  3. spring — a coil
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. charge — in control
  6. charge — a price
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. rush — hurry
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. track — a song
  12. track — to keep track
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. charge — electricity
  15. track — a path
  16. spring — of water
  17. perch — the fish
  18. spring — the season
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. date — the fruit
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. cold — not warm

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