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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. wind — moving air
  6. field — farmland
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. cue — for pool
  12. field — for sport
  13. bulb — for light
  14. root — of a word
  15. bark — to shout
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. bulb — for light
  19. cue — a signal
  20. root — the cause
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. root — of a plant
  23. field — a subject
  24. bat — the 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