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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. pound — a weight
  4. field — a subject
  5. perch — the fish
  6. field — farmland
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. scale — in music
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a city
  13. craft — boats
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. rash — hasty
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. rash — a series
  18. craft — a skill
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. field — for sport
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. scale — size or range

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