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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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. field — farmland
  3. cue — for pool
  4. face — to point toward
  5. field — a subject
  6. cue — a hint
  7. dip — to sink
  8. file — a document
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. face — part of the head
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. bark — to shout
  14. mug — a cup
  15. cue — a signal
  16. face — to confront
  17. file — a tool
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. field — for sport
  21. file — a line of people
  22. perch — the fish
  23. mug — a face
  24. mug — to rob

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