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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: plane · charge · pit · cold · swing · rest · perch · field

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. field — for sport
  3. cold — an illness
  4. field — farmland
  5. cold — not warm
  6. field — a subject
  7. swing — music
  8. charge — electricity
  9. pit — in a race
  10. charge — in control
  11. swing — in golf
  12. rest — what's left
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. perch — the fish
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. charge — a price
  18. rest — a break
  19. swing — to play on
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. rest — what's left
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. plane — a tool

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