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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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Word bank
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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: mate · mark · perch · capital · pit · season · wound · chest

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. wound — an injury
  4. pit — a hole
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. mate — a friend
  7. mark — a trace
  8. pit — in a race
  9. chest — a box
  10. season — of the year
  11. season — in sport
  12. mate — to breed
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. chest — of your body
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. wound — an injury
  18. capital — a city
  19. chest — of your body
  20. mark — a grade
  21. capital — money
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. mate — a partner

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