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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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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: leaves · drill · kid · perch · face · bass · roll · chair

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. face — part of the head
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. bass — low music
  5. bass — the fish
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. drill — the tool
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. perch — the fish
  10. chair — a leader
  11. face — to confront
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. drill — army training
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. kid — child
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. face — to point toward
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. drill — a practice
  20. roll — a list
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. roll — a cake
  24. leaves — to go away

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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