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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: bear · lash · perch · kid · march · stem · field · track

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. bear — the animal
  3. bear — the animal
  4. kid — to tease
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. march — the month
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. stem — to come from
  10. field — farmland
  11. track — a song
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. field — a subject
  14. march — the month
  15. kid — child
  16. track — to keep track
  17. perch — the fish
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. field — for sport
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. march — music
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. perch — for a bird

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