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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: last · field · mate · charge · roll · lie · perch · wind

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. lie — to recline
  3. last — final
  4. charge — a price
  5. charge — electricity
  6. charge — in control
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. roll — a list
  10. field — a subject
  11. mate — a friend
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. last — finally
  14. wind — moving air
  15. mate — a partner
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. last — to go on
  18. roll — a cake
  19. field — for sport
  20. field — farmland
  21. perch — the fish
  22. wind — moving air
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. mate — to breed

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