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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. snap — to click
  3. bound — certain
  4. season — of the year
  5. season — in sport
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. prune — to trim
  8. drill — the tool
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. face — part of the head
  11. bound — tied together
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. face — to point toward
  17. bark — to shout
  18. drill — a practice
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. prune — to trim
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. bound — obliged
  24. drill — army training

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