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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · staff · perch · game · key · ball · clip · straw

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. game — wild animals
  3. game — a match
  4. ball — a great time
  5. field — for sport
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. key — the most important part
  10. clip — to cut
  11. field — a subject
  12. key — in music
  13. field — farmland
  14. perch — the fish
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. staff — employees
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. staff — a stick
  19. ball — a dance
  20. clip — a video
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. staff — employees
  23. key — for a lock
  24. clip — for paper

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