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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. object — an aim
  3. key — for a lock
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bark — to shout
  6. press — to push
  7. key — the most important part
  8. press — newspapers
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. saw — the tool
  11. key — in music
  12. press — a publisher
  13. ground — a position
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. field — a subject
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. object — a thing
  19. field — for sport
  20. ground — the earth
  21. field — farmland
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. object — to protest
  24. ground — crushed

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