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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.

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: bark · drill · fall · kid · field · mug · lean · spring

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fall — the season
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. spring — the season
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. field — a subject
  8. spring — a coil
  9. bark — to shout
  10. kid — to tease
  11. mug — to rob
  12. field — for sport
  13. mug — a cup
  14. spring — of water
  15. kid — child
  16. lean — thin
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. fall — to drop
  20. lean — to bend
  21. drill — army training
  22. drill — a practice
  23. drill — the tool
  24. mug — a face

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