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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  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. bowl — a dish
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. prune — to trim
  4. field — farmland
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. suit — clothes
  7. prune — to trim
  8. suit — to fit
  9. fine — high quality
  10. pop — music
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. field — for sport
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. pound — a weight
  16. pop — to visit
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. pop — soda
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. suit — in cards
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. perch — the fish
  23. fine — all right
  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