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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. spell — letters
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. field — a subject
  9. field — farmland
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. fine — all right
  12. spell — magic
  13. shower — to wash
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. field — for sport
  17. shower — rain
  18. perch — the fish
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. spell — a short time
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. fine — high quality
  24. plane — a tool

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