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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: wind · chair · swing · mark · season · wave · perch · deal

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. season — of the year
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. swing — in golf
  10. mark — a grade
  11. swing — to play on
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. perch — the fish
  14. deal — to handle
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. wind — moving air
  20. chair — a leader
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. season — in sport
  23. swing — music
  24. mark — a trace

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