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

Word bank: game · mate · field · saw · face · perch · deal · race

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. saw — the tool
  3. race — humankind
  4. field — for sport
  5. saw — the tool
  6. perch — the fish
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. face — part of the head
  9. mate — a friend
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. game — wild animals
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. face — to point toward
  14. game — a match
  15. deal — to handle
  16. face — to confront
  17. mate — a partner
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. mate — to breed
  21. field — a subject
  22. race — a contest
  23. race — the arms race
  24. field — farmland

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