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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: season · drill · ball · rash · current · perch · rock · last

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. drill — a practice
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. perch — the fish
  6. rock — a stone
  7. season — of the year
  8. rash — a series
  9. current — electric
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. drill — army training
  12. current — of water
  13. current — happening now
  14. ball — a great time
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. last — to go on
  18. drill — the tool
  19. rash — hasty
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. ball — a dance
  22. last — final
  23. rock — music
  24. season — in sport

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