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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. field — farmland
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. root — of a plant
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. row — a line
  8. pop — music
  9. tear — from crying
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. pop — soda
  12. root — of a word
  13. field — a subject
  14. stand — to bear
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. field — for sport
  17. perch — the fish
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. row — to paddle
  20. root — the cause
  21. tear — to rip
  22. tear — from crying
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. stand — on your feet

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