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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 116 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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. pop — music
  3. key — for a lock
  4. drill — the tool
  5. season — of the year
  6. key — in music
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. field — farmland
  9. chip — for betting
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. drill — army training
  12. key — the most important part
  13. pop — to visit
  14. field — a subject
  15. pop — soda
  16. field — for sport
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. chip — to eat
  19. perch — the fish
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. drill — a practice
  23. kid — to tease
  24. season — in sport

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