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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: key · ground · bark · wound · field · saw · date · rash

  1. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. field — farmland
  5. date — the fruit
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. ground — a position
  8. field — a subject
  9. rash — hasty
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. key — for a lock
  12. field — for sport
  13. bark — to shout
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. rash — a series
  16. key — the most important part
  17. saw — the tool
  18. ground — the earth
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. saw — the tool
  21. wound — an injury
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. ground — crushed

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