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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tear · pound · present · key · fork · field

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. field — a subject
  3. tear — from crying
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. fork — in a road
  7. field — for sport
  8. present — a gift
  9. field — farmland
  10. pound — a weight
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. key — for a lock
  13. key — the most important part
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. key — in music
  16. tear — from crying
  17. present — the time now
  18. present — there

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