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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  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. rush — a thrill
  3. mark — a trace
  4. tear — from crying
  5. pop — music
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. saw — the tool
  8. pop — to visit
  9. stock — goods
  10. pop — soda
  11. field — farmland
  12. mark — a grade
  13. field — a subject
  14. perch — the fish
  15. stock — shares
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. rush — hurry
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. saw — the tool
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. tear — to rip
  23. tear — from crying
  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