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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. suit — in cards
  3. rock — music
  4. spell — letters
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. tube — the underground
  7. band — a ring
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. suit — to fit
  10. tube — a container
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. spell — magic
  13. track — a path
  14. track — a song
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. bark — to shout
  17. spell — a short time
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. suit — clothes
  20. chair — a leader
  21. rock — a stone
  22. band — a music group
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. track — to keep track

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