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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. field — farmland
  3. field — a subject
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. firm — decided
  6. sharp — clever
  7. hand — in cards
  8. field — for sport
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. spell — letters
  11. march — the month
  12. deal — to handle
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. spell — a short time
  15. march — music
  16. perch — the fish
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. firm — a company
  20. firm — steady
  21. hand — help
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. spell — magic

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