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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. drill — a practice
  4. drill — the tool
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. spring — the season
  7. perch — the fish
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. present — there
  14. court — of a king
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. present — the time now
  17. drill — army training
  18. spring — of water
  19. spring — a coil
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. pound — a weight
  22. court — of law
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. court — for 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