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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: drill · rush · cold · bowl · net · face · perch · clip

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. face — to confront
  3. drill — army training
  4. drill — the tool
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. clip — for paper
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. net — after costs
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. net — in sport
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. face — part of the head
  16. net — for catching
  17. clip — a video
  18. cold — not warm
  19. cold — an illness
  20. rush — hurry
  21. clip — to cut
  22. drill — a practice
  23. perch — the fish
  24. face — to point toward

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