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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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Word bank
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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: field · perch · shower · track · march · file · vault · deal

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. 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. field — farmland
  2. march — music
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. file — a line of people
  6. shower — rain
  7. vault — a safe
  8. march — the month
  9. track — a path
  10. file — a document
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. track — to keep track
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. field — a subject
  15. deal — to handle
  16. march — the month
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. track — a song
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. perch — the fish
  21. file — a tool
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. shower — to wash
  24. 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