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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. object — an aim
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. field — for sport
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. branch — a division
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. object — to protest
  13. cap — a hat
  14. fork — in a road
  15. pound — a weight
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. field — a subject
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. cap — of ice
  21. object — a thing
  22. bark — to shout
  23. cap — a lid
  24. branch — 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