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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 124 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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. field — a subject
  3. march — the month
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. field — farmland
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bore — to tire
  10. present — the time now
  11. march — the month
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. bat — the animal
  14. perch — the fish
  15. march — music
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. present — a gift
  18. field — for sport
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. bore — to drill

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