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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. squash — the sport
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. lean — to bend
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. file — a line of people
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. stock — shares
  10. bore — to drill
  11. field — for sport
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. file — a document
  15. squash — to crush
  16. perch — the fish
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. bore — to tire
  19. lean — thin
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. file — a tool
  22. field — farmland
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. stock — goods

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