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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bulb — for light
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. staff — a stick
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. date — the fruit
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. wake — a trail
  13. roll — a list
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. bark — to shout
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. roll — a cake
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. staff — employees
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. bat — the animal
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. roll — on a roll

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