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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: bark · ball · lie · jam · band · mark · plane · field

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. ball — a dance
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. band — a music group
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. field — farmland
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. plane — a tool
  9. field — a subject
  10. band — a ring
  11. bark — to shout
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. lie — to recline
  16. ball — a great time
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. mark — a grade
  19. mark — a trace
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. field — for sport
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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