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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: craft · perch · racket · field · kick · deal

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. 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. craft — boats
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. perch — the fish
  4. field — a subject
  5. field — farmland
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. kick — in football
  13. deal — to handle
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. craft — a skill
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. 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