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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. lean — thin
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. mark — a trace
  5. season — in sport
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. rest — what's left
  9. season — of the year
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. lean — to bend
  12. bark — to shout
  13. rest — a break
  14. fork — in a road
  15. field — farmland
  16. field — for sport
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wax — to grow
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. rest — what's left
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. mark — a grade
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. lean — to rest against

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