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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. rock — a stone
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. cap — a hat
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. mark — a trace
  7. bark — to shout
  8. land — to come down
  9. cap — of ice
  10. field — farmland
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. field — a subject
  15. wake — a trail
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. land — ground
  18. rock — music
  19. field — for sport
  20. mark — a grade
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. land — a country
  24. cap — a lid

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