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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: fine · court · toast · mate · fall · spell · perch · clip

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. spell — magic
  5. mate — to breed
  6. perch — the fish
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. clip — to cut
  9. fine — all right
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. fall — to drop
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. spell — letters
  14. mate — a friend
  15. court — for sport
  16. mate — a partner
  17. court — of law
  18. clip — a video
  19. clip — for paper
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fall — the season
  22. spell — a short time
  23. court — of a king
  24. fine — high quality

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