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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  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. safe — out of danger
  2. field — farmland
  3. perch — the fish
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. mine — for digging
  6. present — the time now
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. present — a gift
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. present — there
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. current — of water
  16. field — for sport
  17. vault — a safe
  18. current — electric
  19. chair — a leader
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. current — happening now
  23. chair — to sit on
  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