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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. cell — in biology
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. present — a gift
  5. field — a subject
  6. last — finally
  7. saw — the tool
  8. field — farmland
  9. present — the time now
  10. object — an aim
  11. bark — to shout
  12. object — to protest
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. toast — bread
  16. field — for sport
  17. present — there
  18. cell — a phone
  19. last — to go on
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. saw — the tool
  22. object — a thing
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. toast — the most admired

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