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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. field — for sport
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. field — a subject
  6. bulb — for light
  7. spring — of water
  8. content — happy
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. bark — to shout
  11. can — a tin
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. can — to be able to
  16. spring — a coil
  17. fork — in a road
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. bulb — for light
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. can — a tin
  23. spring — the season
  24. field — farmland

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