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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. bat — the animal
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. field — a subject
  5. perch — the fish
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. can — a tin
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. can — to be able to
  12. field — farmland
  13. row — to paddle
  14. net — in sport
  15. can — a tin
  16. field — for sport
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. row — a line
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. net — after costs
  22. net — for catching
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. bat — for baseball

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