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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. content — happy
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. tear — to rip
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bark — to shout
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. tear — from crying
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. field — for sport
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. snap — to click
  15. drill — army training
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. content — the amount
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. field — a subject
  21. drill — the tool
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. field — farmland

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