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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. perch — the fish
  3. game — a match
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. field — for sport
  6. foot — a measure
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. swing — to play on
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. field — farmland
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. lie — to recline
  18. rush — hurry
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. pitch — completely
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. swing — in golf
  23. game — wild animals
  24. swing — music

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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