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

Word bank: racket · field · rest · kid · lie · mine · perch · scale

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. scale — in music
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. rest — what's left
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. perch — the fish
  7. field — a subject
  8. field — for sport
  9. kid — to tease
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. field — farmland
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. rest — a break
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. rest — what's left
  18. lie — to recline
  19. scale — size or range
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. mine — for digging
  22. kid — child
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. mine — belonging to me

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