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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. field — farmland
  4. deal — to handle
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. fall — to drop
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. fine — high quality
  11. rock — a stone
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. field — a subject
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. field — for sport
  17. perch — the fish
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. fine — all right
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. fall — the season
  24. fall — to drop

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