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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bulb — for light
  3. cell — a phone
  4. cell — in biology
  5. land — a country
  6. row — to paddle
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. field — farmland
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. land — ground
  11. land — to come down
  12. row — a line
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. field — a subject
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. field — for sport
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. row — a quarrel

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