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

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. file — a line of people
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. file — a document
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. field — a subject
  9. game — wild animals
  10. mark — a grade
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. game — a match
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. field — for sport
  15. bark — to shout
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. field — farmland
  18. mark — a trace

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