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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  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. rock — music
  2. current — electric
  3. track — to keep track
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. bore — to drill
  7. current — of water
  8. rock — a stone
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. field — for sport
  12. field — a subject
  13. current — happening now
  14. bark — to shout
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. bore — to tire
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — for light
  19. track — a song
  20. track — a path
  21. field — farmland
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. trunk — of a tree
  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