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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. field — a subject
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. wax — to grow
  5. game — wild animals
  6. cue — a signal
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. cold — an illness
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. cue — a hint
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. field — farmland
  16. game — a match
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. cue — for pool
  21. cold — not warm
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. bark — to shout

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