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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. charge — electricity
  3. field — for sport
  4. charge — in control
  5. rest — what's left
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bark — to shout
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. field — a subject
  13. charge — a price
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cold — an illness
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. wake — a trail
  19. rest — what's left
  20. cold — not warm
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. field — farmland
  24. calf — a young animal

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