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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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Word bank
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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: game · mine · lie · rash · bark · foot · field · firm

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. game — wild animals
  3. foot — a measure
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. mine — for digging
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. rash — hasty
  9. field — for sport
  10. field — farmland
  11. rash — a series
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. bark — to shout
  14. field — a subject
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. lie — to recline
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. firm — steady
  23. firm — a company
  24. game — a match

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