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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: chair · march · court · hide · mate · sharp · perch · bear

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. bear — the animal
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. mate — a friend
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. perch — the fish
  10. mate — to breed
  11. court — of law
  12. court — for sport
  13. march — the month
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. chair — a leader
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. mate — a partner
  19. march — the month
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. court — of a king
  22. march — music
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. sharp — clever

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