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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. rash — a series
  3. field — farmland
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. rash — hasty
  6. spell — a short time
  7. mate — a friend
  8. spell — magic
  9. spell — letters
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. mate — to breed
  12. field — a subject
  13. cell — a phone
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. field — for sport
  17. pass — a permit
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. capital — money
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. perch — the fish
  22. cell — in biology
  23. mate — a partner
  24. capital — a city

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