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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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. capital — money
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. bear — the animal
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. pitch — completely
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. bear — the animal
  13. perch — the fish
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. kick — in football
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. field — a subject
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. dip — to sink
  21. field — for sport
  22. capital — a city
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. field — farmland

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