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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. branch — a division
  3. last — finally
  4. field — farmland
  5. spell — magic
  6. field — a subject
  7. swing — music
  8. spell — a short time
  9. ball — a dance
  10. swing — to play on
  11. spell — letters
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. field — for sport
  15. last — to go on
  16. mug — a cup
  17. last — final
  18. mug — a face
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. mug — to rob
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. swing — in golf
  24. perch — the fish

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