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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. field — for sport
  4. hand — in cards
  5. face — to point toward
  6. drill — the tool
  7. drill — army training
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. face — part of the head
  10. drill — a practice
  11. present — the time now
  12. perch — the fish
  13. field — farmland
  14. ground — the earth
  15. hand — help
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. ground — crushed
  18. present — a gift
  19. ground — a position
  20. present — there
  21. face — to confront
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. rush — hurry
  24. perch — for a bird

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