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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. march — the month
  3. charge — electricity
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. charge — a price
  6. charge — in control
  7. squash — to crush
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. tear — from crying
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — farmland
  16. squash — the sport
  17. tear — to rip
  18. march — the month
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. tear — from crying
  22. bark — to shout
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. march — music

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