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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. rest — what's left
  3. bark — to shout
  4. rest — a break
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. field — farmland
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. wound — an injury
  9. snap — to click
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. current — of water
  13. current — happening now
  14. field — for sport
  15. wound — an injury
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. rest — what's left
  19. field — a subject
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. current — electric
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. mine — belonging to me

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