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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 116 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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. perch — the fish
  3. mine — for digging
  4. field — for sport
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. land — ground
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. ball — a great time
  9. charge — electricity
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. land — a country
  12. pit — in a race
  13. charge — in control
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. wake — a trail
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. pit — a hole
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. field — farmland
  21. ball — a dance
  22. charge — a price
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. field — a subject

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