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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bore — to tire
  4. face — to confront
  5. spring — of water
  6. bark — to shout
  7. spring — the season
  8. drill — army training
  9. drill — the tool
  10. face — to point toward
  11. object — an aim
  12. spring — a coil
  13. field — for sport
  14. mark — a trace
  15. field — farmland
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. drill — a practice
  19. field — a subject
  20. face — part of the head
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. mark — a grade
  23. object — to protest
  24. bore — to drill

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