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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. bark — to shout
  3. file — a tool
  4. branch — a division
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — a break
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. rush — hurry
  13. file — a document
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. field — for sport
  18. file — a line of people
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. field — farmland
  21. rest — what's left
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. dip — to sink
  24. branch — of a bank

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