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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. field — a subject
  3. field — for sport
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. field — farmland
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. shower — to wash
  12. bark — to shout
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. present — the time now
  16. present — a gift
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. plane — a tool
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. season — in sport
  22. season — of the year
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. shower — rain

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