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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  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. calf — a young animal
  2. mark — a trace
  3. key — for a lock
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. face — to confront
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. face — to point toward
  9. field — for sport
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. face — part of the head
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. fork — in a road
  15. field — farmland
  16. key — in music
  17. field — a subject
  18. bat — the animal
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. mark — a grade
  23. perch — the fish
  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