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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. field — for sport
  3. chip — to eat
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. stand — to bear
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. rest — a break
  12. rest — what's left
  13. field — a subject
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. chip — for betting
  16. branch — a division
  17. field — farmland
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. sharp — clever
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. rest — what's left
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. bark — to shout

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