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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 116 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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. bark — to shout
  3. land — to come down
  4. race — humankind
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. mine — for digging
  7. land — a country
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. bore — to tire
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. land — ground
  12. rock — a stone
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. race — the arms race
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. race — a contest
  17. field — for sport
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. bore — to drill
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. rock — music
  23. field — a subject
  24. bark — of a tree

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