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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
468
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 · object · last · arm · present · field · bat · wake

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. object — to protest
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. object — a thing
  5. field — farmland
  6. bark — to shout
  7. present — there
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. last — finally
  11. field — a subject
  12. last — final
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. present — a gift
  15. bat — the animal
  16. present — the time now
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. last — to go on
  20. object — an aim
  21. wake — a trail
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. wake — before a funeral

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