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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. field — farmland
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. cue — a signal
  5. capital — money
  6. cue — a hint
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. field — a subject
  10. bark — to shout
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. capital — a city
  15. cue — for pool
  16. kid — child
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. roll — a cake
  21. roll — a list
  22. kid — to tease
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. bark — of a tree

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