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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. swing — to play on
  5. hand — help
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. deal — to handle
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. perch — the fish
  12. swing — music
  13. field — a subject
  14. swing — in golf
  15. field — farmland
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. bore — to drill
  18. toast — bread
  19. hand — in cards
  20. bore — to tire
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. 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