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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. land — ground
  3. track — to keep track
  4. field — farmland
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. bark — to shout
  7. field — a subject
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. mark — a trace
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. track — a path
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bulb — for light
  15. bulb — for light
  16. land — to come down
  17. wax — to grow
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. plane — a tool
  20. field — for sport
  21. track — a song
  22. mark — a grade
  23. land — a country
  24. plane — an aircraft

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