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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. rock — music
  5. spring — of water
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. field — a subject
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. spring — the season
  12. row — a line
  13. toast — bread
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. bark — to shout
  17. spring — a coil
  18. row — to paddle
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. field — farmland
  22. rock — a stone
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. field — for sport

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