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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. bear — the animal
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. wind — moving air
  7. field — farmland
  8. game — a match
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. wind — moving air
  11. game — wild animals
  12. capital — a city
  13. bark — to shout
  14. plane — a tool
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. key — in music
  18. field — for sport
  19. key — for a lock
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. key — the most important part
  23. field — a subject
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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