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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. bark — to shout
  3. spell — letters
  4. spell — magic
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. file — a line of people
  7. rest — a break
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. field — farmland
  11. file — a document
  12. object — a thing
  13. spell — a short time
  14. object — an aim
  15. rest — what's left
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. object — to protest
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. file — a tool
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. rush — hurry
  24. field — a subject

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