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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 120 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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. staff — employees
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. field — farmland
  7. perch — the fish
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. staff — employees
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. band — a music group
  13. cell — in biology
  14. swing — music
  15. field — a subject
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. staff — a stick
  20. field — for sport
  21. swing — to play on
  22. band — a ring
  23. swing — in golf
  24. cell — a phone

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