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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. wake — a trail
  3. field — a subject
  4. firm — steady
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. clip — to cut
  7. firm — a company
  8. staff — employees
  9. band — a music group
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. staff — employees
  12. band — a ring
  13. suit — to fit
  14. staff — a stick
  15. clip — for paper
  16. field — for sport
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. firm — decided
  19. suit — in cards
  20. bark — to shout
  21. clip — a video
  22. field — farmland
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. suit — clothes

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