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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 116 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: pit · ruler · wave · field · branch · bark · fine · cold

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. field — farmland
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. field — for sport
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. pit — in a race
  8. fine — all right
  9. branch — a division
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. cold — not warm
  13. field — a subject
  14. fine — high quality
  15. bark — to shout
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. cold — an illness
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. fine — a penalty

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