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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. suit — in cards
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. track — to keep track
  6. row — a line
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. press — a publisher
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. suit — clothes
  12. perch — the fish
  13. field — a subject
  14. track — a song
  15. press — to push
  16. field — for sport
  17. suit — to fit
  18. track — a path
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. row — to paddle
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. chair — a leader
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. press — newspapers

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