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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. ball — a great time
  3. field — a subject
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. mark — a trace
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. field — for sport
  8. cell — a phone
  9. rule — a law
  10. roll — a cake
  11. perch — the fish
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. mark — a grade
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. ball — a dance
  16. rule — government
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. field — farmland
  21. roll — a list
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — in biology
  24. perch — for a bird

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