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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 · last · wind · pit · bound · calf · press · chair

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  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. bound — certain
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. press — a publisher
  4. last — finally
  5. wind — moving air
  6. last — final
  7. last — to go on
  8. perch — the fish
  9. chair — a leader
  10. bound — tied together
  11. pit — a hole
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. bound — obliged
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. press — to push
  20. press — newspapers
  21. pit — in a race
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. chair — a professorship
  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