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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. cell — in biology
  4. field — for sport
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. field — a subject
  7. bulb — for light
  8. swing — music
  9. bound — obliged
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. bulb — for light
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. bat — the animal
  14. perch — the fish
  15. field — farmland
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. fork — in a road
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. swing — in golf
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. bound — tied together
  22. bound — certain
  23. cell — a phone
  24. bat — in an idiom

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