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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: field · rest · fine · file · bark · bowl · squash · wax

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  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. field — a subject
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. file — a tool
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. bark — to shout
  6. rest — a break
  7. squash — the sport
  8. rest — what's left
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. fine — all right
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. squash — to crush
  13. field — for sport
  14. rest — what's left
  15. wax — to grow
  16. fine — high quality
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. file — a document
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. field — farmland
  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