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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: kid · fine · key · hand · perch · jam · bass · last

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. key — the most important part
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. kid — to tease
  6. perch — the fish
  7. hand — in cards
  8. fine — high quality
  9. fine — all right
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. key — for a lock
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. last — final
  15. bass — the fish
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. kid — child
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. key — in music
  21. bass — low music
  22. last — to go on
  23. hand — help
  24. jam — in traffic

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