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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. field — for sport
  3. bound — tied together
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wound — an injury
  6. saw — the tool
  7. rock — a stone
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. saw — the tool
  10. bound — certain
  11. bound — obliged
  12. chair — a leader
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. rock — music
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. shower — rain
  17. shower — to wash
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. field — farmland
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. field — a subject

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