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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. land — ground
  3. bulb — for light
  4. tear — to rip
  5. roll — a list
  6. bark — to shout
  7. tear — from crying
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. row — to paddle
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. land — to come down
  13. roll — a cake
  14. board — to get on
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. tear — from crying
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. board — a committee
  23. row — a line
  24. land — a country

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