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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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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. sharp — clever
  5. cap — of ice
  6. field — for sport
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. present — the time now
  9. cap — a lid
  10. cap — a hat
  11. perch — the fish
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. present — a gift
  14. present — there
  15. field — farmland
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. field — a subject
  18. perch — for a bird

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