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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 120 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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. chip — for betting
  3. mark — a grade
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. mark — a trace
  6. chip — to eat
  7. field — a subject
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. cell — in biology
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. swing — music
  14. swing — in golf
  15. swing — to play on
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. field — farmland
  18. wake — a trail
  19. rush — hurry
  20. field — for sport
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. bark — to shout
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. cell — a phone

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