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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: ball · roll · board · mine · pit · fall · perch · branch

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. ball — a great time
  3. pit — a hole
  4. ball — a dance
  5. fall — to drop
  6. roll — a cake
  7. board — a committee
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. roll — a list
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. branch — a division
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fall — the season
  19. pit — in a race
  20. board — to get on
  21. mine — for digging
  22. perch — the fish
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. branch — of a tree

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