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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. kick — in football
  3. cell — in biology
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. row — to paddle
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. spell — letters
  8. snap — to click
  9. field — for sport
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. spell — magic
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. field — a subject
  16. cell — a phone
  17. perch — the fish
  18. mug — a face
  19. field — farmland
  20. spell — a short time
  21. mug — a cup
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. mug — to rob

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