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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 116 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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. fine — all right
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. field — farmland
  7. field — for sport
  8. vault — a safe
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. present — a gift
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. present — there
  14. race — a contest
  15. chair — a leader
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. race — the arms race
  20. fine — high quality
  21. perch — the fish
  22. race — humankind
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. field — a subject

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