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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  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. patient — calm and waiting
  2. key — the most important part
  3. fork — in a road
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. last — to go on
  6. track — to keep track
  7. track — a song
  8. pound — a weight
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. file — a line of people
  11. track — a path
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. file — a document
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. key — for a lock
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. last — final
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. last — finally
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. key — in music
  23. file — a tool
  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