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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 116 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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. perch — the fish
  7. ball — a great time
  8. field — farmland
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. capital — money
  11. prune — to trim
  12. field — a subject
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. ball — a dance
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. capital — a city
  18. prune — to trim

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