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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. current — happening now
  5. present — a gift
  6. lie — to recline
  7. spring — a coil
  8. date — the fruit
  9. degree — an amount
  10. current — electric
  11. present — the time now
  12. degree — from a university
  13. present — there
  14. field — a subject
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. field — for sport
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. spring — the season
  20. degree — temperature
  21. bark — to shout
  22. field — farmland
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. current — of water

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