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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. drill — the tool
  3. band — a ring
  4. drill — army training
  5. perch — the fish
  6. squash — the sport
  7. squash — to crush
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — farmland
  11. drill — a practice
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. swing — in golf
  16. season — in sport
  17. swing — music
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. vault — a safe
  20. swing — to play on
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. season — of the year
  24. field — for sport

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