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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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. pop — soda
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. wind — moving air
  7. lie — to recline
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. wind — moving air
  11. object — to protest
  12. squash — to crush
  13. object — an aim
  14. object — a thing
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. field — farmland
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. field — a subject
  21. perch — the fish
  22. squash — the sport
  23. pop — to visit
  24. pop — music

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