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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mate — a friend
  6. field — for sport
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. bass — low music
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. bass — the fish
  14. field — a subject
  15. hand — help
  16. mate — to breed
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. mate — a partner
  20. bark — to shout
  21. chair — a leader
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. hand — in cards
  24. mouse — the animal

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