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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: field · prune · cue · march · bear · firm · bark · file

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. field — farmland
  3. firm — steady
  4. bear — the animal
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. file — a document
  7. field — for sport
  8. cue — for pool
  9. march — the month
  10. file — a line of people
  11. march — music
  12. firm — decided
  13. bear — the animal
  14. prune — to trim
  15. cue — a hint
  16. march — the month
  17. field — a subject
  18. cue — a signal
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. file — a tool
  21. firm — a company
  22. bark — to shout
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. bear — to put up with

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