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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
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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: row · wound · roll · perch · mate · squash · chest · season

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. row — a line
  3. perch — the fish
  4. season — in sport
  5. squash — to crush
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. mate — to breed
  9. roll — a cake
  10. mate — a partner
  11. wound — an injury
  12. mate — a friend
  13. squash — the sport
  14. chest — of your body
  15. roll — a list
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. row — to paddle
  18. season — of the year
  19. chest — a box
  20. chest — of your body
  21. wound — an injury
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. roll — on a roll

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