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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. season — of the year
  4. march — music
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. court — for sport
  8. row — a line
  9. court — of a king
  10. bark — to shout
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. season — in sport
  13. march — the month
  14. march — the month
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. court — of law

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