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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.

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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: wind · pit · capital · deal · club · fork · field · bark

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. field — farmland
  3. capital — money
  4. club — for golf
  5. club — for dancing
  6. field — a subject
  7. capital — a city
  8. fork — in a road
  9. pit — a hole
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. club — a group
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. wind — moving air
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. pit — in a race
  21. field — for sport
  22. bark — to shout
  23. deal — to handle
  24. bark — of a tree

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