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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. perch — the fish
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. field — farmland
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. bulb — for light
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. field — for sport
  10. kid — to tease
  11. field — a subject
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. kid — child
  15. rest — a break
  16. rock — a stone
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. rock — music
  21. rest — what's left
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. rest — what's left
  24. bulb — for light

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