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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 120 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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. cue — for pool
  4. bore — to tire
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. field — for sport
  9. prune — to trim
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. bass — the fish
  12. pit — in a race
  13. bass — low music
  14. prune — to trim
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. cue — a signal
  17. bark — to shout
  18. field — farmland
  19. field — a subject
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. cue — a hint
  23. pit — a hole
  24. bore — to drill

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