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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. chair — a leader
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. track — a song
  7. pitch — completely
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. track — to keep track
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. field — for sport
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. field — a subject
  18. bear — the animal
  19. field — farmland
  20. track — a path
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. bark — to shout
  23. mine — for digging
  24. bark — of a tree

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