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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 120 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 ________________ went through the wall.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. field — for sport
  3. fork — in a road
  4. face — part of the head
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. bark — to shout
  7. spring — a coil
  8. tear — to rip
  9. field — a subject
  10. tear — from crying
  11. content — the amount
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. field — farmland
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. face — to point toward
  16. content — happy
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. spring — of water
  19. spring — the season
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. face — to confront
  23. tear — from crying
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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