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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. race — the arms race
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. content — happy
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. sharp — clever
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. race — humankind
  13. spring — of water
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. race — a contest
  17. bark — to shout
  18. spring — a coil
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. prune — to trim
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. spring — the season
  24. content — the amount

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