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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 an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. field — farmland
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. rush — hurry
  5. pit — a hole
  6. bound — certain
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. ball — a great time
  9. object — an aim
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. bound — tied together
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. pit — in a race
  15. ball — a dance
  16. field — for sport
  17. drill — a practice
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. drill — the tool
  20. drill — army training
  21. object — to protest
  22. bark — to shout
  23. object — a thing
  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