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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. stock — goods
  7. shower — rain
  8. shower — to wash
  9. spring — of water
  10. field — for sport
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. stock — shares
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. field — a subject
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. spring — a coil
  17. field — farmland
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. perch — the fish
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. pass — a permit
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. hide — animal skin

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