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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
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: shower · perch · snap · bear · chair · season · bound · wake

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. bound — certain
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bear — the animal
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. snap — to click
  13. bound — obliged
  14. shower — rain
  15. shower — to wash
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. season — of the year
  18. wake — a trail
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bound — tied together
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. chair — a leader
  24. perch — the fish

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