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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: track · lie · perch · straw · spell · ground · staff · chest

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. track — to keep track
  3. ground — crushed
  4. staff — employees
  5. staff — a stick
  6. spell — letters
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. perch — the fish
  9. chest — a box
  10. spell — a short time
  11. staff — employees
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. spell — magic
  14. chest — of your body
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. chest — of your body
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. track — a path
  21. lie — to recline
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. track — a song
  24. ground — the earth

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