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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 116 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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. last — finally
  3. bark — to shout
  4. club — for dancing
  5. lie — to recline
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. spring — the season
  9. last — final
  10. rule — government
  11. club — a group
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. club — for golf
  15. last — to go on
  16. spring — a coil
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. rule — a law
  19. capital — a city
  20. craft — a skill
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. craft — boats
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. spring — of water

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