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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. toast — bread
  4. press — a publisher
  5. perch — the fish
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. wind — moving air
  8. last — final
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. staff — a stick
  11. press — to push
  12. last — to go on
  13. press — newspapers
  14. last — finally
  15. fork — in a road
  16. field — farmland
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. field — for sport
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. wind — moving air
  21. staff — employees
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. staff — employees
  24. wind — to turn a key

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