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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 120 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: clip · lean · last · season · ball · sharp · row · perch

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  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. lean — to rest against
  2. season — of the year
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. last — finally
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — final
  7. perch — the fish
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. row — a line
  10. ball — a dance
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. sharp — clever
  14. lean — to bend
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. ball — a great time
  17. clip — a video
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. row — to paddle
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. clip — for paper
  22. lean — thin
  23. clip — to cut
  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