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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. field — a subject
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. charge — electricity
  5. saw — the tool
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. bound — certain
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. bound — tied together
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. rash — a series
  14. saw — the tool
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. charge — a price
  17. field — farmland
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bark — to shout
  20. field — for sport
  21. wake — a trail
  22. charge — in control
  23. rash — hasty
  24. bound — obliged

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