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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. rock — a stone
  5. cold — not warm
  6. field — for sport
  7. field — farmland
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. wake — a trail
  15. cold — an illness
  16. rock — music
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. field — a subject
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. mark — a trace
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. mark — a grade

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