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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: swing · perch · tube · drill · foot · mug · wound · rest

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. tube — a container
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. wound — an injury
  5. drill — army training
  6. drill — a practice
  7. swing — to play on
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. drill — the tool
  10. tube — the underground
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. perch — the fish
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. mug — to rob
  15. swing — in golf
  16. rest — what's left
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. mug — a cup
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. mug — a face
  22. rest — what's left
  23. foot — a measure
  24. swing — music

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