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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. chest — of your body
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. pit — a hole
  5. mug — a face
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. wind — moving air
  8. mug — a cup
  9. wind — moving air
  10. hand — in cards
  11. chest — of your body
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. mug — to rob
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. perch — the fish
  16. staff — employees
  17. staff — employees
  18. hand — help
  19. pound — a weight
  20. chest — a box
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. pit — in a race

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