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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. field — for sport
  3. rest — a break
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. bulb — for light
  6. field — a subject
  7. rest — what's left
  8. perch — the fish
  9. bulb — for light
  10. net — after costs
  11. field — farmland
  12. net — in sport
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. rest — what's left
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — an injury

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