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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.

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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 · season · prune · chair · cell · scale · calf · deal

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. perch — the fish
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. deal — to handle
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. scale — in music
  10. scale — size or range
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. cell — a phone
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. season — in sport
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. prune — to trim
  21. prune — to trim
  22. chair — a leader
  23. cell — in biology
  24. season — of the year

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