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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. field — a subject
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. charge — electricity
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. field — for sport
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. root — of a plant
  11. swing — to play on
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. charge — a price
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. root — of a word
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. swing — in golf
  19. swing — music
  20. root — the cause
  21. bark — to shout
  22. ball — a dance
  23. ball — a great time
  24. charge — in control

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