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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. wind — moving air
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. pop — to visit
  5. perch — the fish
  6. mug — a face
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. wind — moving air
  9. mug — to rob
  10. field — a subject
  11. pop — music
  12. pop — soda
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. shower — rain
  16. vault — a safe
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. field — farmland
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. shower — to wash
  23. mug — a cup
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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