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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.

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: pit · rock · season · hand · straw · perch · squash · file

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. season — in sport
  7. file — a tool
  8. pit — in a race
  9. season — of the year
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. squash — the sport
  12. rock — music
  13. rock — a stone
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. pit — a hole
  16. perch — the fish
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. hand — in cards
  20. file — a line of people
  21. file — a document
  22. hand — help
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. squash — to crush

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