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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. field — for sport
  3. rash — a series
  4. rock — music
  5. chest — of your body
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. rash — hasty
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. field — farmland
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. chest — of your body
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. field — a subject
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. lean — thin
  19. bulb — for light
  20. perch — the fish
  21. bulb — for light
  22. rock — a stone
  23. lean — to bend
  24. chest — a box

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