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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. season — in sport
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. field — farmland
  6. wake — a trail
  7. firm — steady
  8. mate — to breed
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. pit — in a race
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. firm — a company
  14. field — a subject
  15. plane — a tool
  16. bark — to shout
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. mate — a partner
  20. mate — a friend
  21. pit — a hole
  22. firm — decided
  23. field — for sport
  24. season — of the year

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