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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. rush — hurry
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. field — for sport
  6. perch — the fish
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. prune — to trim
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. rule — government
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. field — a subject
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. spell — letters
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. bore — to drill
  17. spell — a short time
  18. bore — to tire
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. spell — magic
  23. rule — a law
  24. prune — to trim

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