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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. bark — to shout
  3. field — for sport
  4. rock — music
  5. mug — to rob
  6. file — a tool
  7. pit — in a race
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. clip — a video
  10. mug — a face
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. clip — for paper
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. clip — to cut
  15. pit — a hole
  16. file — a document
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. field — farmland
  19. mug — a cup
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. rush — hurry
  22. field — a subject
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. file — a line of people

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