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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
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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: bark · foot · spring · key · deal · wave · field · date

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. spring — of water
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. field — farmland
  6. bark — to shout
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. field — a subject
  9. key — in music
  10. spring — a coil
  11. date — the fruit
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. spring — the season
  16. key — for a lock
  17. deal — to handle
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. foot — a measure
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. field — for sport
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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