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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. degree — an amount
  4. perch — the fish
  5. rest — what's left
  6. degree — temperature
  7. bat — the animal
  8. rest — a break
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. land — ground
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. field — farmland
  15. degree — from a university
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. branch — a division
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. field — a subject
  20. land — a country
  21. land — to come down
  22. rest — what's left
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. vault — a safe

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