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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. shower — to wash
  3. charge — a price
  4. object — a thing
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. shower — rain
  8. charge — electricity
  9. charge — in control
  10. bark — to shout
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. wax — to grow
  14. field — for sport
  15. rule — a law
  16. field — a subject
  17. wake — a trail
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. object — to protest
  20. object — an aim
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. rule — government

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