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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 sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. land — a country
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. bore — to drill
  5. mine — for digging
  6. bore — to tire
  7. present — the time now
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. land — to come down
  10. present — a gift
  11. net — after costs
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. last — final
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. last — to go on
  16. land — ground
  17. present — there
  18. net — in sport
  19. net — for catching
  20. last — finally
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. bore — gave birth

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