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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. field — a subject
  4. saw — the tool
  5. field — for sport
  6. saw — the tool
  7. tear — from crying
  8. date — the fruit
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. mug — to rob
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. mug — a face
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. shower — rain
  16. field — farmland
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. perch — the fish
  19. tear — to rip
  20. shower — to wash
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. tear — from crying
  23. mug — a cup
  24. perch — for a bird

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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