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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. press — newspapers
  4. field — farmland
  5. field — for sport
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. chip — for betting
  9. bark — to shout
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. field — a subject
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. perch — the fish
  16. press — a publisher
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. race — humankind
  19. race — the arms race
  20. content — happy
  21. press — to push
  22. race — a contest
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. content — the amount

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