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

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. land — a country
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. field — a subject
  5. field — farmland
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. land — to come down
  8. cap — a hat
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. cap — a lid
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. field — for sport
  15. land — ground
  16. cap — of ice
  17. wake — a trail
  18. temple — a place of worship

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