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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. rock — a stone
  4. field — for sport
  5. content — happy
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. bark — to shout
  8. root — of a plant
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. dip — to sink
  13. root — of a word
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. root — the cause
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. rock — music
  18. field — a subject
  19. kick — in football
  20. content — the amount
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. field — farmland
  23. squash — to crush
  24. squash — the sport

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