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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: bay · content · rest · perch · chair · fall · lash · cold

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. rest — a break
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. perch — the fish
  9. content — the amount
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. rest — what's left
  12. cold — an illness
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. cold — not warm
  15. fall — to drop
  16. chair — a leader
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. fall — the season
  19. rest — what's left
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. content — happy

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