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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. field — for sport
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. present — there
  6. sharp — clever
  7. bark — to shout
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. spring — of water
  10. cap — a hat
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. cap — a lid
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. present — a gift
  16. cap — of ice
  17. field — a subject
  18. spring — a coil
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. spring — the season
  21. field — farmland
  22. present — the time now
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. rush — hurry

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