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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. file — a line of people
  3. spell — letters
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. field — for sport
  6. firm — a company
  7. spell — magic
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. bore — to drill
  10. cap — a hat
  11. firm — steady
  12. spell — a short time
  13. chair — a leader
  14. cap — a lid
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. field — farmland
  17. file — a tool
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. bore — to tire
  20. cap — of ice
  21. field — a subject
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. bark — to shout
  24. file — a document

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