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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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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: firm · game · land · nail · rash · last · swing · perch

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. swing — to play on
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. land — a country
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. last — finally
  8. firm — steady
  9. last — final
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. rash — hasty
  12. last — to go on
  13. swing — in golf
  14. firm — decided
  15. rash — a series
  16. land — to come down
  17. firm — a company
  18. game — a match
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. game — wild animals
  21. swing — music
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. perch — the fish
  24. land — ground

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