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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. prune — to trim
  3. key — in music
  4. content — the amount
  5. land — to come down
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. drill — a practice
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. land — a country
  11. content — happy
  12. drill — the tool
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. scale — size or range
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. drill — army training
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. key — for a lock
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. scale — in music
  23. land — ground
  24. key — the most important part

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