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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. cap — of ice
  3. content — happy
  4. spell — magic
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. cap — a lid
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. field — a subject
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. cap — a hat
  12. field — for sport
  13. spell — a short time
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. field — farmland
  16. pit — a hole
  17. spell — letters
  18. perch — the fish
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. pit — in a race
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. content — the amount
  24. arm — part of the body

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