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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. bank — of a river
  3. court — of law
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. current — of water
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. stock — shares
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. mark — a trace
  11. field — farmland
  12. bark — to shout
  13. bank — for money
  14. current — electric
  15. field — for sport
  16. mark — a grade
  17. field — a subject
  18. hand — in cards
  19. stock — goods
  20. current — happening now
  21. court — of a king
  22. bank — for money
  23. hand — help
  24. court — for sport

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