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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. key — for a lock
  4. file — a line of people
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. spring — of water
  8. spring — a coil
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. file — a tool
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. field — for sport
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. spring — the season
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. wax — to grow
  20. file — a document
  21. field — farmland
  22. key — in music
  23. field — a subject
  24. key — the most important part

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