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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. field — for sport
  4. mug — to rob
  5. face — part of the head
  6. mug — a face
  7. march — the month
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. face — to confront
  11. mug — a cup
  12. march — the month
  13. face — to point toward
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. march — music
  16. field — farmland
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. bark — to shout

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