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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. mate — to breed
  3. spring — a coil
  4. prune — to trim
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. mate — a friend
  7. field — a subject
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. spring — the season
  11. rest — what's left
  12. bark — to shout
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. field — farmland
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. mate — a partner
  17. rest — a break
  18. spring — of water
  19. rest — what's left
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. prune — to trim
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. hide — animal skin

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