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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. shower — rain
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. bark — to shout
  5. toast — bread
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. cell — a phone
  11. wake — a trail
  12. press — to push
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. net — in sport
  15. net — for catching
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. net — after costs
  18. cell — in biology
  19. press — newspapers
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. press — a publisher
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. shower — to wash
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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