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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. rush — hurry
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. perch — the fish
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. field — a subject
  7. bound — certain
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. field — for sport
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. cap — of ice
  12. field — farmland
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. bound — tied together
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. cap — a lid
  19. cap — a hat
  20. bound — obliged
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. pitch — completely
  23. land — ground
  24. land — a country

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