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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. mate — a partner
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. field — a subject
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. rock — music
  8. saw — the tool
  9. field — for sport
  10. bark — to shout
  11. mate — to breed
  12. field — farmland
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. date — the fruit
  18. saw — the tool
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. rock — a stone
  22. mine — for digging
  23. mate — a friend
  24. rush — hurry

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