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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: roll · rule · track · ball · field · suit · bark · cold

  1. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. suit — clothes
  3. rule — government
  4. field — a subject
  5. ball — a dance
  6. field — for sport
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. track — a path
  9. cold — an illness
  10. field — farmland
  11. track — to keep track
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. bark — to shout
  14. roll — a cake
  15. roll — a list
  16. ball — a great time
  17. rule — a law
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. suit — to fit
  22. track — a song
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. rule — to rule out

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