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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 116 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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. present — a gift
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. capital — money
  7. field — a subject
  8. shower — to wash
  9. field — farmland
  10. present — the time now
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. perch — the fish
  13. present — there
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. shower — rain
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. capital — a city
  24. racket — for tennis

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