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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 120 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: wind · mug · lean · last · perch · mark · ground · pit

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. wind — moving air
  4. pit — a hole
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. ground — a position
  7. last — to go on
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. lean — thin
  10. mark — a trace
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. mug — a face
  13. mug — a cup
  14. mark — a grade
  15. perch — the fish
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. ground — crushed
  18. wind — moving air
  19. last — final
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. lean — to bend
  22. pit — in a race
  23. ground — the earth
  24. mug — to rob

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