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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. bark — to shout
  3. fork — in a road
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. lie — to recline
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. pound — a weight
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. degree — temperature
  16. shower — to wash
  17. degree — from a university
  18. degree — an amount
  19. shower — rain
  20. wind — moving air
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. pound — to hit hard

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