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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. field — for sport
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. bark — to shout
  9. field — a subject
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. prune — to trim
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. rule — government
  14. mine — for digging
  15. rule — a law
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. field — farmland
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. fork — in a road
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. prune — to trim

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