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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. present — there
  4. cap — a lid
  5. rest — a break
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. field — a subject
  8. season — of the year
  9. cap — of ice
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bark — to shout
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. field — farmland
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. cap — a hat
  16. present — the time now
  17. plane — a tool
  18. present — a gift
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. rest — what's left
  22. field — for sport
  23. bat — the animal
  24. season — in sport

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