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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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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. perch — the fish
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. race — a contest
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. pop — soda
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. wind — moving air
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. pop — music
  13. pop — to visit
  14. foot — a measure
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. last — finally
  18. last — to go on
  19. race — humankind
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. race — the arms 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