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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. field — for sport
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. field — a subject
  11. field — farmland
  12. plane — a tool
  13. cell — a phone
  14. bore — to tire
  15. bound — tied together
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. cell — in biology
  18. press — newspapers
  19. bound — obliged
  20. bore — to drill
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. perch — the fish
  23. press — a publisher
  24. press — to push

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