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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: wound · racket · bay · pop · pit · chair · last · perch

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. wound — an injury
  4. pop — to visit
  5. pit — in a race
  6. wound — an injury
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. perch — the fish
  10. chair — a leader
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. pop — music
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. pit — a hole
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. pop — soda
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. last — final
  22. last — finally
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. last — to go on

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