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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. perch — the fish
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. lie — to recline
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. field — a subject
  15. fork — in a road
  16. cold — not warm
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. field — for sport
  19. deal — to handle
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. content — happy
  23. content — the amount
  24. field — farmland

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