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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. field — farmland
  4. face — to confront
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. dip — to sink
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. cell — a phone
  14. face — part of the head
  15. bear — the animal
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. face — to point toward
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. bear — the animal
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. field — for sport
  22. perch — the fish
  23. cell — in biology
  24. cell — in a prison

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