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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: key · toast · perch · straw · kid · march · pitcher · rest

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. rest — a break
  5. perch — the fish
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. kid — to tease
  9. key — in music
  10. march — the month
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. march — music
  13. rest — what's left
  14. key — for a lock
  15. march — the month
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. kid — child
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. toast — bread
  23. rest — what's left
  24. key — the most important part

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