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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: file · bound · wax · root · bore · racket · bear · field

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. field — a subject
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bore — to drill
  5. field — for sport
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. root — of a word
  8. wax — to grow
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. root — the cause
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. field — farmland
  14. bound — obliged
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. bore — to tire
  18. root — of a plant
  19. file — a tool
  20. bound — certain
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. bound — tied together
  23. file — a document
  24. file — a line of people

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