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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.

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 · bark · squash · shower · patient · pit · field · track

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. file — a document
  4. file — a tool
  5. track — a song
  6. pit — in a race
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. field — for sport
  9. track — a path
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. bark — to shout
  12. squash — the sport
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. field — a subject
  15. track — to keep track
  16. field — farmland
  17. squash — to crush
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. pit — a hole
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. file — a line of people
  22. shower — to wash
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. shower — rain

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