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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. field — farmland
  3. root — of a word
  4. ground — a position
  5. date — the fruit
  6. ground — crushed
  7. wound — an injury
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. field — a subject
  11. root — the cause
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. ground — the earth
  14. field — for sport
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. fine — high quality
  17. root — of a plant
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. bark — to shout
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. wound — an injury
  23. fine — all right
  24. leaves — lets stay

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