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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: toast · perch · last · season · file · game · sharp · roll

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. last — finally
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. roll — a list
  6. season — of the year
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. game — a match
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. file — a document
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. roll — a cake
  17. file — a line of people
  18. season — in sport
  19. last — final
  20. game — wild animals
  21. last — to go on
  22. file — a tool
  23. sharp — clever
  24. perch — the fish

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