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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. season — in sport
  5. club — a group
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. dip — to sink
  8. chair — a leader
  9. bark — to shout
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. season — of the year
  12. date — the fruit
  13. shower — rain
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. club — for dancing
  17. shower — to wash
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. club — for golf
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. present — there
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. present — the time now

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