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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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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: perch · wound · row · pass · lean · last · safe · court

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. pass — a permit
  3. court — of a king
  4. lean — to bend
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. perch — the fish
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. row — a line
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. court — of law
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. last — finally
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. wound — an injury
  18. lean — thin
  19. last — to go on
  20. wound — an injury
  21. court — for sport
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. row — to paddle
  24. perch — for a bird

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