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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. field — a subject
  3. cell — a phone
  4. chest — of your body
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. chest — a box
  10. current — of water
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. lie — to recline
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. row — a line
  15. perch — the fish
  16. field — farmland
  17. current — happening now
  18. stand — to bear
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. field — for sport
  21. row — to paddle
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. current — electric
  24. chest — of your body

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